Netweaver AbapApplication · Sap

CVE-2021-33684

MEDIUM · 5.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-07-14
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
SAP NetWeaver AS ABAP and ABAP Platform, versions - KRNL32NUC 7.21, 7.21EXT, 7.22, 7.22EXT, KRNL32UC 7.21, 7.21EXT, 7.22, 7.22EXT, KRNL64NUC 7.21, 7.21EXT, 7.22, 7.22EXT, 7.49, KRNL64UC 8.04, 7.21, 7.21EXT, 7.22, 7.22EXT, 7.49, 7.53, KERNEL 8.04, 7.21, 7.21EXT, 7.22, 7.22EXT, 7.49, 7.53, 7.77, 7.81, 7.84, allows an attacker to send overlong content in the RFC request type thereby crashing the corresponding work process because of memory corruption vulnerability. The work process will attempt to restart itself after the crash and hence the impact on the availability is low.

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

In SAP NetWeaver AS ABAP, the RFC (Remote Function Call) request handler fails to properly validate input length when processing RFC request types. An attacker sending overlong content in an RFC request triggers memory corruption, causing the associated work process to crash. The work process automatically restarts after the crash, limiting availability impact.

MitigationApply the relevant SAP kernel patch for CVE-2021-33684. Until patches are available, consider restricting RFC access via network-level controls or SAP authorization restrictions to reduce attack surface.

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
Netweaver AbapApplication
Affected:= 7.21= 7.21ext= 7.22= 7.22ext= 7.49= 7.53= 7.77= 7.81= kernel_8.04= krnl32nuc_7.21= krnl32uc_7.21= krnl64nuc_7.21
Netweaver Application Server AbapApplication
Affected:= 7.21= 7.21ext= 7.22= 7.22ext= 7.49= 7.53= 7.77= 7.81= kernel_8.04= krnl32nuc_7.21= krnl32uc_7.21= krnl64nuc_7.21

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
None
Integrity
None
Availability
Low

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

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 SAP NetWeaver ABAP version
    Access transaction SM51 (SAP System) or execute SAP kernel version check command; review the kernel patch level in system information
    Affected if The installed kernel version matches 7.21, 7.21ext, 7.22, 7.22ext, 7.49, 7.53, 7.77, 7.81, kernel_8.04, krnl32nuc_7.21, krnl32uc_7.21, or krnl64nuc_7.21 without subsequent security patches applied
  2. Confirm RFC functionality is active
    Access transaction SM59 to view configured RFC destinations, or check transaction SM37 for work process activity; verify that RFC listener processes are running
    Affected if RFC request handling is enabled and exposed, as the vulnerability exists in the RFC request handler component
  3. Inspect work process logs for crashes
    Review transaction SM21 (System Log) or transaction ST03 for recent work process terminations; filter for error codes related to memory corruption or ABAP runtime errors
    Affected if Work process crashes are logged with symptoms of memory corruption or abnormal termination following RFC request processing

You are affected if your SAP NetWeaver ABAP kernel version is among the listed unpatched versions AND RFC functionality is enabled and accessible in your environment.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the relevant SAP kernel patch for CVE-2021-33684. Until patches are available, consider restricting RFC access via network-level controls or SAP authorization restrictions to reduce attack surface.

Fix this in Netweaver Abap Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
24.0 hours of engineering $4,160
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Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

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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-2021-33684 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
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