Remote code execution via shared ViewState keys
Published Dec 21, 2021 · Updated Oct 21, 2025
Hard-coded credentials in Acclaim USAHERDS 7.4.0.1 and earlier allow remote attackers to execute code through crafted ASP.NET ViewState data. The application reuses static ValidationKey and DecryptionKey values across installations, letting a forged ViewState pass the MAC check and reach server-side deserialization. Exploitation is unauthenticated but requires the shared keys to be obtained through a separate flaw or another channel, and successful exploitation grants code execution on the application server.
Summary
What happened
Hard-coded credentials in Acclaim USAHERDS 7.4.0.1 and earlier allow remote attackers to execute code through crafted ASP.NET ViewState data. The application reuses static ValidationKey and DecryptionKey values across installations, letting a forged ViewState pass the MAC check and reach server-side deserialization. Exploitation is unauthenticated but requires the shared keys to be obtained through a separate flaw or another channel, and successful exploitation grants code execution on the application server.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2021-44207
- Published
- Dec 21, 2021
- Updated
- Oct 21, 2025
- Vendor
- Unknown vendor
- Product
- Unknown product
- Classifications
- CWE-798, T1190
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jul 1, 2021Exploitation reportedAPT41 exploitation of USAHERDS
- Dec 21, 2021CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Oct 21, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- YSoSerial.NET malicious ViewState generatorfunctional · observed in use
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Reported exploitation
- APT41 exploitation of USAHERDSthreat actor
- CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities listingknown exploited catalog
Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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