dbcve.org
SametimeApplication · Hcltech

CVE-2021-27772

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-05-12
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
71/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
Users are able to read group conversations without actively taking part in them. Next to one to one conversations, users are able to start group conversations with multiple users. It was found possible to obtain the contents of these group conversations without being part of it. This could lead to information leakage where confidential information discussed in private groups is read by other users without the users knowledge.

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 broken access control vulnerability in the group messaging functionality allows users to read the contents of group conversations they are not members of, enabling unauthorized access to private group discussions and resulting in information disclosure.

MitigationImplement proper authorization checks to verify user membership before allowing access to group conversation contents, and audit all conversation access patterns for similar vulnerabilities.

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
SametimeApplication
Affected:= 11.6

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

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

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 Sametime installation and version
    Locate the Sametime installation directory (typically under /opt/hcl/sametime or C:\Program Files\HCL\Sametime) and check the version manifest or about page. On Linux, run: find /opt -name '*.version' -o -name 'version.properties' 2>/dev/null | xargs grep -i '11.6'
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 11.6 (exact match)
  2. Confirm group messaging module is active
    Access the Sametime administrative console or check the server configuration for the sametime-group-messaging or equivalent service component. Look for enabled status in the services.xml or mgservice.xml configuration file.
    Affected if Group messaging service is installed and enabled on the server
  3. Verify conversation access controls exist
    Examine the access control configuration for group conversations. Check if the server enforces membership validation before returning conversation content. Look for Authorization header handling and session validation in the web service logs or proxy configuration.
    Affected if No membership verification is enforced when accessing conversation endpoints; any authenticated user can query conversation IDs
  4. Test cross-group conversation enumeration
    Using an API client or browser, attempt to access a group conversation endpoint (such as /api/conversations/{conversationId}/messages) with a conversation ID from a group you are not a member of, while authenticated as a regular user.
    Affected if The server returns conversation content or message history for groups the authenticated user does not belong to
  5. Review server logs for unauthorized access patterns
    Inspect Sametime server access logs or audit logs for repeated requests to conversation endpoints from users accessing conversation IDs outside their membership scope. Look for patterns indicating enumeration or bulk access.
    Affected if Logs show access to conversation resources by users not listed as group members

If the installed Sametime version is exactly 11.6 AND group messaging is enabled, the environment is affected by this vulnerability if unauthorized users can retrieve conversation content from groups they do not belong to.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Implement proper authorization checks to verify user membership before allowing access to group conversation contents, and audit all conversation access patterns for similar vulnerabilities.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Contact HCL support for the fixed release version

  1. Contact HCL technical support (support.hcltechsw.com) to obtain the specific patch or fixed release for this vulnerability
  2. Request CVE-2021-27772 remediation details and any available security patches
  3. Apply the vendor-provided security update to Sametime 11.6

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

Fix this in Sametime Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation12.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
25.0 hours of engineering $4,400
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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-2021-27772 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