dbcve.org
Connect SecureApplication · Ivanti

CVE-2021-22935

HIGH · 7.2 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-08-16
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 9.1 or later.
See remediation →
78/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable 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
A vulnerability in Pulse Connect Secure before 9.1R12 could allow an authenticated administrator to perform command injection via an unsanitized web parameter.

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 · high confidence

A command injection vulnerability in Pulse Connect Secure versions before 9.1R12 allows an authenticated administrator to execute arbitrary commands through an unsanitized web parameter. This is a post-authentication vulnerability requiring administrator-level access to the VPN gateway.

MitigationUpgrade Pulse Connect Secure to version 9.1R12 or later to remediate this 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
Connect SecureApplication
Affected:= 9.1
Pulse Connect SecureApplication
Affected:< 9.1

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
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/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. Identify the installed Pulse Connect Secure version
    Log into the admin web interface and navigate to System > Status, or run 'show system information' via CLI. Note the full version number including the release number (e.g., 9.1R11, 9.1R12).
    Affected if The version shown is 9.1 (any R variant) or any version lower than 9.1R12 (such as 9.0.x, 8.x, etc.)
  2. Confirm the exact 9.1 release variant
    If the version displays as 9.1, check whether it specifies 9.1R12 or higher. The admin UI typically shows this in System > Status under 'Firmware Version' or 'System Version'.
    Affected if The version is 9.1 but not 9.1R12 or later (e.g., 9.1R1 through 9.1R11 are vulnerable).
  3. Verify administrative access exists
    This vulnerability requires an authenticated administrator session. Confirm whether the administrator web interface is accessible and check user role permissions via Users > Admin Users in the admin UI.
    Affected if The device allows administrator-level login access, meaning a successful attacker with admin credentials could exploit the unsanitized web parameter.

You are affected if your Pulse Connect Secure or Ivanti Connect Secure version is 9.1 (any release before 9.1R12) or any version below 9.1R12, and the admin interface is accessible.

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 9.1 or later
Fixed in 9.1
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Pulse Connect Secure to version 9.1R12 or later to remediate this vulnerability.

Recommended fix High confidence

Pulse Connect Secure 9.1R12 or later

  1. Back up the current Pulse Connect Secure configuration before starting the upgrade process
  2. Review the release notes for version 9.1R12 or later to understand changes and any prerequisites
  3. Download the Pulse Connect Secure 9.1R12 or later firmware from the official Pulse Secure download portal (kb.pulsesecure.net)
  4. Schedule a maintenance window as upgrades may cause brief service interruption
  5. Upload the new firmware through the admin web interface or via CLI using the appropriate upgrade command
  6. Monitor the upgrade process and verify the system restarts successfully
  7. Log in to the admin interface after upgrade and confirm the new version number is displayed
  8. Verify that the previously vulnerable functionality is now working correctly
Caveat Upgrade may cause brief service interruption; review release notes for any configuration changes required

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

Fix this in Connect Secure Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,080
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,328.

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-2021-22935 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