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Manageengine Adselfservice PlusApplication · Zohocorp

CVE-2021-28958

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-06-25
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
High EPSS 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
Zoho ManageEngine ADSelfService Plus through 6101 is vulnerable to unauthenticated Remote Code Execution while changing the password.

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

Zoho ManageEngine ADSelfService Plus through version 6101 contains an unauthenticated Remote Code Execution vulnerability that can be exploited during the password change functionality. An attacker without credentials can execute arbitrary code on the underlying system by sending specially crafted requests to the password change endpoint.

MitigationApply the vendor patch or upgrade ADSelfService Plus to a version beyond 6101. Additionally, restrict network access to the application and monitor for unusual password change requests from untrusted sources.

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
Manageengine Adselfservice PlusApplication
Affected:= 4.5= 5.0= 5.0.6= 5.1= 5.2= 5.3= 5.4= 5.5= 5.6= 5.7= 5.8= 6.0

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. Identify installed ADSelfService Plus version
    Locate the ADSelfService Plus installation and check the product version. This is typically accessible via the web interface login page, in the product's About section, or in installation directories. Common paths include the manager's console or help/about menu.
    Affected if The installed version matches 4.5, 5.0, 5.0.6, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 5.7, 5.8, 6.0, or 6101 (all versions up to and including 6101).
  2. Verify password change functionality is enabled
    Check the ADSelfService Plus admin console to determine if the self-service password change feature is activated. Look for User Self-Service settings, Password Management, or similar configuration sections.
    Affected if The password change or self-service password reset feature is enabled and accessible to end users.
  3. Confirm network accessibility of password change endpoint
    Determine if the password change endpoint (typically accessible at /ServletAPI/password, /password, or similar endpoints handling password change requests) is exposed to untrusted networks. Check firewall rules, reverse proxy configurations, and application access controls.
    Affected if The password change functionality is reachable from untrusted or external network segments without authentication requirements.

You are affected if your installed ADSelfService Plus version is 6101 or any version from 4.5 through 6.0 AND the self-service password change feature is enabled and network-accessible to untrusted users.

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

Apply the vendor patch or upgrade ADSelfService Plus to a version beyond 6101. Additionally, restrict network access to the application and monitor for unusual password change requests from untrusted sources.

Recommended fix High confidence

ADSelfService Plus 5.2 or later (build 6102 and above)

  1. 1. Identify current ADSelfService Plus build version by navigating to Admin > Product Settings > About in the management console
  2. 2. Download ADSelfService Plus version 5.2 or later from the official ManageEngine download portal
  3. 3. Back up the current ADSelfService Plus installation directory and database
  4. 4. Stop the ADSelfService Plus service
  5. 5. Install version 5.2 or later (ensuring build is 6102 or higher)
  6. 6. Start the ADSelfService Plus service
  7. 7. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the build number in About section
Caveat Review release notes for version 5.2 for any feature changes or configuration requirements that may differ from previous versions

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

Fix this in Manageengine Adselfservice Plus Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
16.0 hours of engineering $2,760
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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-2021-28958 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