CVE-2021-3710Public exploit

Arbitrary file disclosure via unchecked report paths

Published Oct 1, 2021 · Updated Sep 17, 2024

Path traversal in affected Apport packages allows local users to read arbitrary files through crafted crash-report paths. hookutils.py read_file() accepts paths containing parent-directory segments or directory symlinks and attaches the resolved file to a report. Automatic crash reporting must process the crafted report with elevated privileges, exposing files readable by the root-run whoopsie service.

CVSS severity6.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.46%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Path traversal in affected Apport packages allows local users to read arbitrary files through crafted crash-report paths. hookutils.py read_file() accepts paths containing parent-directory segments or directory symlinks and attaches the resolved file to a report. Automatic crash reporting must process the crafted report with elevated privileges, exposing files readable by the root-run whoopsie service.

The record

CVE
CVE-2021-3710
Published
Oct 1, 2021
Updated
Sep 17, 2024
Vendor
Canonical
Product
Apport
Classifications
CWE-22, CWE-24, T1005
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Oct 1, 2021CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Sep 17, 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?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=2.14.1 <2.14.1-0ubuntu3.29+esm8
  2. Affected versionversion=2.20.11 <2.20.11-0ubuntu27.20 changes=[{"at":"2.20.11-0ubuntu65.3","status":"unaffected"}]
  3. Affected versionversion=2.20.1 <2.20.1-0ubuntu2.30+esm2
  4. Affected versionversion=2.20.9 <2.20.9-0ubuntu7.26

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Canonical · Apportversion=2.14.1 <2.14.1-0ubuntu3.29+esm8; version=2.20.11 <2.20.11-0ubuntu27.20 changes=[{"at":"2.20.11-0ubuntu65.3","status":"unaffected"}]; version=2.20.1 <2.20.1-0ubuntu2.30+esm2; version=2.20.9 <2.20.9-0ubuntu7.26

Published CVSS scores

6.5Canonical Ltd.CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N
5.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
4.7NIST NVDAV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:N/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)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-22Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
CWE-24Path Traversal: '../filedir'
T1005Data from Local System

Public exploit references

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

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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