CVE-2021-31997
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 · uneditedA UNIX Symbolic Link (Symlink) Following vulnerability in python-postorius of openSUSE Leap 15.2, Factory allows local attackers to escalate from users postorius or postorius-admin to root. This issue affects: openSUSE Leap 15.2 python-postorius version 1.3.2-lp152.1.2 and prior versions. openSUSE Factory python-postorius version 1.3.4-2.1 and prior versions.
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 confidenceA UNIX Symbolic Link (Symlink) Following vulnerability in python-postorius allows local attackers with access to the postorius or postorius-admin user accounts to escalate privileges to root. The vulnerability stems from insecure file handling where the application follows symlinks when creating or accessing files, enabling attackers to manipulate file system operations to overwrite sensitive system files or gain unauthorized access.
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< 1.3.2-lp152.1.2<= 1.3.4-2.1CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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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Check installed python-postorius versionRun 'rpm -q python-postorius' or 'zypper se -i python-postorius' to retrieve the installed package versionAffected if The version is below 1.3.2-lp152.1.2 (for Leap 15.2) or at or below 1.3.4-2.1 (for Factory/Tumbleweed)
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Verify postorius system user existsRun 'id postorius' or 'getent passwd postorius' to check if the postorius user account is present on the systemAffected if The postorius user account exists - this is the account that could be exploited for privilege escalation
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Check postorius-admin user accountRun 'id postorius-admin' or 'getent passwd postorius-admin' to verify if this elevated-privilege account existsAffected if The postorius-admin user account exists - per the CVE, attackers with access to either account can escalate to root
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Identify postorius data directories with writable permissionsLocate directories used by postorius (commonly /var/lib/postorius, /var/cache/postorius, or the application's data directory) and check permissions with 'ls -la <directory>' - look for world-writable or postorius-owned writable directoriesAffected if There are directories writable by the postorius user where symlinks could be created to overwrite sensitive system files
A system is affected if python-postorius version is below 1.3.2-lp152.1.2 or at or below 1.3.4-2.1 AND the postorius or postorius-admin user account exists with access to writable directories that could be exploited via symlink manipulation.
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.
From vendor data1.3.2-lp152.1.2
Upgrade python-postorius to a version beyond 1.3.2-lp152.1.2 (Leap 15.2) or 1.3.4-2.1 (Factory) that includes proper symlink validation. Until patched, restrict access to the postorius user account and monitor for suspicious file creation in system directories.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing10.0 h
- Review / QA6.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-31997 — 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-2021-31997 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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- 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
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