CVE-2021-23259
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 · uneditedAuthenticated users with Administrator or Developer roles may execute OS commands by Groovy Script which uses Groovy lib to render a webpage. The groovy script does not have security restrictions, which will cause attackers to execute arbitrary commands remotely(RCE).
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 confidenceThis is an authenticated RCE vulnerability in the Groovy script rendering functionality. Users with Administrator or Developer roles can execute arbitrary OS commands through unsandboxed Groovy scripts that lack security restrictions, allowing remote code execution.
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>= 3.1.0, < 3.1.12CVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify Crafter CMS installationLocate the Crafter CMS installation directory and check for the presence of Crafter CMS core files such as startup.sh, crafter.sh, or the tomcat/webapps/crafter directory structure.Affected if The system does not have Crafter CMS installed.
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Determine installed Crafter CMS versionCheck the version file typically found in the installation directory, commonly at bin/craftercms-utils.sh or in the WAR file metadata. Alternatively, access the CMS admin console and view the About section.Affected if The installed version is >= 3.1.0 and < 3.1.12.
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Verify Groovy script rendering functionality is accessibleCheck if the Groovy scripting module is loaded and accessible. Look for groovy-related endpoints or scripts in the crafter-studios/content-type endpoint paths, or verify the groovy-all JAR is present in the classpath.Affected if Groovy script rendering is enabled and functional.
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Confirm presence of Administrator or Developer role accountsReview the users database or user configuration file (usually in data/repo/users) to identify accounts with Administrator or Developer roles.Affected if At least one user with Administrator or Developer role exists and can authenticate.
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Check for script sandboxing configurationInspect the configuration files for groovy.sandbox.enabled or similar security settings in the Crafter CMS configuration, typically in the Studio configuration section.Affected if No sandboxing is configured or sandboxing is disabled for Groovy scripts.
The environment is affected if Crafter CMS version 3.1.0 through 3.1.11 is installed, Groovy script rendering is enabled, and at least one Administrator or Developer user account exists with authentication access.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 · scoped3.1.12
Restrict or disable the Groovy script rendering feature if not essential, implement script sandboxing controls, and apply vendor patches when available.
Crafter CMS 3.1.12
- Backup the current Crafter CMS installation and database
- Review the Crafter CMS 3.1.12 release notes for any known issues or migration requirements
- Download Crafter CMS version 3.1.12 or later from the official source (docs.craftercms.org)
- Stop the Crafter CMS services
- Follow the official upgrade documentation to replace the existing installation with version 3.1.12
- Start the Crafter CMS services and verify the application is running correctly
- Test that Groovy scripts execute within expected security constraints
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-23259 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-23259 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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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.
- 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