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Connect SecureApplication · Ivanti

CVE-2021-22937

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 a file write via a maliciously crafted archive uploaded in the administrator web interface.

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

Pulse Connect Secure before version 9.1R12 contains a file write vulnerability in its administrative web interface. An attacker with authenticated administrator privileges can upload a maliciously crafted archive to write arbitrary files to the system, potentially leading to code execution or configuration tampering.

MitigationUpgrade Pulse Connect Secure to version 9.1R12 or later to remediate this vulnerability. As a temporary compensating control, restrict administrative interface access to trusted IP addresses and monitor for suspicious upload activity.

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
    Access the administrative web interface and navigate to System > Status > System Information, or use the command line: 'show version' or 'dsRegTool --showVersion'
    Affected if The version is 9.1 (for Ivanti Connect Secure) or any version lower than 9.1 (for Pulse Connect Secure)
  2. Verify the administrative web interface is enabled and accessible
    Check if the admin web interface (typically ports 443, 4443, or 8080/8443) is listening and reachable. Use 'netstat -an | grep -E "(443|4443|8080|8443)"' or scan the device from an external host.
    Affected if The administrative interface is exposed to untrusted networks (the vulnerability requires authenticated admin access)
  3. Review administrator session logs for suspicious file upload activity
    Examine logs at /var/log/ics_daemon.log or the admin web interface logs for entries containing 'upload', 'archive', or file write operations from admin sessions.
    Affected if There are anomalous upload operations or archive extractions from administrator sessions that you did not initiate

Your environment is affected if you are running Ivanti Connect Secure version 9.1 or Pulse Connect Secure versions below 9.1, AND the administrative web interface is accessible to potential attackers.

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. As a temporary compensating control, restrict administrative interface access to trusted IP addresses and monitor for suspicious upload activity.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Pulse Connect Secure 9.1R12 or later / Connect Secure 9.1R12 or later

  1. Log into the Pulse Connect Secure or Connect Secure admin web interface with administrator credentials
  2. Navigate to System > Maintenance > Firmware > Upload Firmware
  3. Download the firmware version 9.1R12 or later from the official Pulse Secure support site (kb.pulsesecure.net)
  4. Upload the firmware file through the web interface
  5. After upload completes, navigate to System > Maintenance > Operating Platform and click 'Install Firmware'
  6. Select the newly uploaded firmware version and confirm the installation
  7. Allow the device to reboot and complete the installation process
  8. Verify the firmware version shows 9.1R12 or later in the admin interface under System > Status > Overview
Caveat Review release notes for 9.1R12 for any configuration or feature changes before upgrading; ensure backups of configuration are taken

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

Fix this in Connect Secure Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,920
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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-2021-22937 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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