CVE-2021-3747

Local privilege escalation via misowned application directory

Published Oct 1, 2021 · Updated Sep 17, 2024

Incorrect permissions in Canonical Multipass 1.7.0 through 1.7.1 for macOS allow local users to gain elevated privileges. The macOS installer assigns the application directory to an unintended owner, placing security-critical Multipass files under that account's control. Low-privileged local access is required; altering the directory can cross into a higher-privileged context and compromise host data or service operation.

CVSS severity8.8
High
EPSS probability0.25%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Incorrect permissions in Canonical Multipass 1.7.0 through 1.7.1 for macOS allow local users to gain elevated privileges. The macOS installer assigns the application directory to an unintended owner, placing security-critical Multipass files under that account's control. Low-privileged local access is required; altering the directory can cross into a higher-privileged context and compromise host data or service operation.

The record

CVE
CVE-2021-3747
Published
Oct 1, 2021
Updated
Sep 17, 2024
Vendor
Canonical
Product
Multipass
Classifications
CWE-732, T1574
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

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Is a vulnerable build present?

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

  1. Affected versionversion=1.7 <1.7.2

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Canonical · Multipassversion=1.7 <1.7.2

Published CVSS scores

4.6NIST NVDAV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
8.8Canonical Ltd.CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
7.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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.

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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 exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-732Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource
T1574Hijack Execution Flow

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

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Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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