CVE-2021-42853Network attack vector

Unauthenticated file read and deletion via path traversal

Published Mar 9, 2022 · Updated Sep 16, 2024

Path traversal in Riverbed SteelCentral AppInternals DSA allows remote attackers to read or delete files through its diagnostic logs API. AgentDiagnosticServlet passes unvalidated path input from the logs endpoint to file operations, permitting traversal outside the intended log directory. No authentication or user interaction is required, and exposed agents can disclose host files or suffer service interruption through deletion.

CVSS severity9.1
Critical
EPSS probability1.57%
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 Riverbed SteelCentral AppInternals DSA allows remote attackers to read or delete files through its diagnostic logs API. AgentDiagnosticServlet passes unvalidated path input from the logs endpoint to file operations, permitting traversal outside the intended log directory. No authentication or user interaction is required, and exposed agents can disclose host files or suffer service interruption through deletion.

The record

CVE
CVE-2021-42853
Published
Mar 9, 2022
Updated
Sep 16, 2024
Vendor
Riverbed Technology
Product
SteelCentral AppInternals Dynamic Sampling Agent
Classifications
CWE-22, CWE-20, T1485, T1005
Attack vector
network
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Mar 9, 2022CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Sep 16, 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=10.x
  2. Affected versionversion=11.8.8 <11.8.8
  3. Affected versionversion=12.13.0 <12.13.0

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Riverbed Technology · SteelCentral AppInternals Dynamic Sampling Agentversion=10.x; version=11.8.8 <11.8.8; version=12.13.0 <12.13.0

Published CVSS scores

9.1Government Technology Agency of Singapore Cyber Security GroupCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H
9.8National Institute of Standards and TechnologyCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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.

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
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-22Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
CWE-20Improper Input Validation
T1485Data Destruction
T1005Data from Local System

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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