CVE-2021-27098Network attack vector

Workload impersonation via missing SPIFFE ID authorization

Published Mar 5, 2021 · Updated Aug 3, 2024

Improper access control in SPIRE 0.8.1 through 0.8.4 and affected later branches allows remote authenticated users to obtain unauthorized X.509 SVIDs. FetchX509SVID accepted a requested SPIFFE ID without confirming that the authenticated agent was authorized to distribute that identity. Exploitation requires a valid agent certificate authorized for another ID in the same trust domain, and the resulting certificate enables workload impersonation.

CVSS severity8.1
High
EPSS probability0.56%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

Improper access control in SPIRE 0.8.1 through 0.8.4 and affected later branches allows remote authenticated users to obtain unauthorized X.509 SVIDs. FetchX509SVID accepted a requested SPIFFE ID without confirming that the authenticated agent was authorized to distribute that identity. Exploitation requires a valid agent certificate authorized for another ID in the same trust domain, and the resulting certificate enables workload impersonation.

The record

CVE
CVE-2021-27098
Published
Mar 5, 2021
Updated
Aug 3, 2024
Vendor
Unknown vendor
Product
Unknown product
Classifications
CWE-284, CWE-295, T1649
Attack vector
network
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Mar 5, 2021CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 3, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected buildAffected product and version details are unavailable.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

5.5NIST National Vulnerability DatabaseAV:N/AC:L/Au:S/C:P/I:P/A:N
8.1NIST National Vulnerability DatabaseCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
8.1GitHub Security AdvisoryCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-284Improper Access Control
CWE-295Improper Certificate Validation
T1649Steal or Forge Authentication Certificates

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo