dbcve.org
MuleApplication · Salesforce

CVE-2021-1628

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-03-26
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 4.2.2 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
MuleSoft is aware of a XML External Entity (XXE) vulnerability affecting certain versions of a Mule runtime component that may affect both CloudHub and on-premise customers. Affected versions: Mule 4.x runtime released before February 2, 2021.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · moderate confidence

MuleSoft Mule 4.x runtime contains an XML External Entity (XXE) vulnerability that allows attackers to exploit vulnerable XML parsers by including malicious external entity references, potentially leading to sensitive file disclosure, server-side request forgery (SSRF), or denial of service.

MitigationUpdate Mule 4.x runtime to a version released on or after February 2, 2021, which contains the vendor patch for this XXE vulnerability.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
MuleApplication
Affected:>= 4.0.0, <= 4.2.2

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Locate the Mule runtime installation
    Identify the directory where MuleSoft Mule 4.x runtime is installed. This is typically the root folder containing the mule binary or wrapper scripts.
    Affected if Mule runtime is not installed on the system, the check is not applicable.
  2. Find the installed Mule version
    Locate the version file or runtime properties within the Mule installation directory. Common locations include version.properties, mule-module.properties, or the runtime JAR manifest. Alternatively, run the mule runtime with a version flag if available.
    Affected if Unable to determine the version, assume the system may be running an affected version.
  3. Compare against the affected version range
    Verify the installed version falls within 4.0.0 to 4.2.2 inclusive. If the version is exactly 4.0.0, 4.1.x, or 4.2.0 through 4.2.2, the system is within the affected range.
    Affected if The installed version is 4.0.0, 4.1.x, or 4.2.0 through 4.2.2, indicating the runtime is vulnerable to CVE-2021-1628.
  4. Confirm XML processing is in use
    Review application configurations and deployed APIs to determine if any application accepts and processes XML input. Check for XML parsers or data transformation components that handle XML requests.
    Affected if XML input processing is enabled and the Mule runtime version is within 4.0.0 to 4.2.2, the XXE vulnerability is exploitable.

If the Mule runtime version is between 4.0.0 and 4.2.2 inclusive and the environment processes XML input, the system is affected by this CVE.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 4.2.2
Interim mitigation

Update Mule 4.x runtime to a version released on or after February 2, 2021, which contains the vendor patch for this XXE vulnerability.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Mule 4.3.0 or later

  1. Identify your current Mule runtime version using the Anypoint Runtime Manager or by checking the $MULE_HOME/bin/mule version command
  2. Download Mule runtime version 4.3.0 or later from the MuleSoft download site (anypoint.mulesoft.com)
  3. Test the upgrade in a non-production environment first to verify compatibility with your applications
  4. Create a complete backup of your current Mule runtime installation and applications
  5. Stop the current Mule runtime instance
  6. Install the new Mule 4.3.0 or later version to replace the affected installation
  7. Redeploy your applications to the upgraded runtime
  8. Verify that applications are running correctly and the XXE vulnerability is mitigated
Caveat Review MuleSoft release notes for 4.3.0 for any breaking changes or deprecated features before upgrading

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Mule Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
Get the upgrade done

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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-1628 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data