CVE-2021-4041

Host command execution via shell-interpreted parameters

Published Aug 24, 2022 · Updated Aug 3, 2024

Command injection in Red Hat Ansible Runner before 2.1.0 allows attackers to execute shell commands on the host through run_command parameters. The subprocess runner joins the command list into a string and invokes subprocess.run with shell=True, causing shell metacharacters in cmdline_args to be interpreted instead of passed literally. When a developer supplies attacker-controlled parameters while expecting container isolation, the injected command runs on the host with the invoking process's privileges.

CVSS severity7.8
High
EPSS probability0.33%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Command injection in Red Hat Ansible Runner before 2.1.0 allows attackers to execute shell commands on the host through run_command parameters. The subprocess runner joins the command list into a string and invokes subprocess.run with shell=True, causing shell metacharacters in cmdline_args to be interpreted instead of passed literally. When a developer supplies attacker-controlled parameters while expecting container isolation, the injected command runs on the host with the invoking process's privileges.

The record

CVE
CVE-2021-4041
Published
Aug 24, 2022
Updated
Aug 3, 2024
Vendor
Red Hat
Product
Ansible Runner
Classifications
CWE-116, CWE-20, T1059
Attack vector
local
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Aug 24, 2022CVE 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

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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=Fixed in ansible-runner 2.1.0

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Red Hat · Ansible Runnerversion=Fixed in ansible-runner 2.1.0

Published CVSS scores

7.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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.

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

No observations available

Sep 9, 2026Sep 15, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 15, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-116Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output
CWE-20Improper Input Validation
T1059Command and Scripting Interpreter

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

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Your stack

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