dbcve.org
ElasticsearchDatabase / datastore · Elastic

CVE-2021-37937

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-11-22
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 7.14.0 or later.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
An issue was found with how API keys are created with the Fleet-Server service account. When an API key is created with a service account, it is possible that the API key could be created with higher privileges than intended. Using this vulnerability, a compromised Fleet-Server service account could escalate themselves to a super-user.

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 Fleet-Server, when API keys are created for service accounts, the privilege assignment logic allows keys to be created with higher privileges than intended. A compromised Fleet-Server service account can exploit this to create API keys with super-user privileges, escalating their access beyond what the service account should have.

MitigationApply the relevant security patch for Fleet-Server. Review and rotate all existing API keys associated with service accounts to ensure no elevated keys were created during the vulnerability window. Consider implementing additional access controls on service account usage.

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
ElasticsearchDatabase / datastore
Affected:>= 7.13.0, <= 7.14.0

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check installed Elasticsearch version
    Run: curl -s -k -u admin:password 'localhost:9200' | grep -i version OR check via Kibana Stack Management > About
    Affected if Version is >= 7.13.0 AND <= 7.14.0
  2. Verify Fleet-Server is enrolled and active
    Check for Fleet-Server agents via: GET /api/fleet/agents OR look for fleet-server indices and processes
    Affected if Fleet-Server is running and managing agents in the affected version range
  3. Identify service accounts with Fleet-Server roles
    Query user privileges: GET /_security/user/_privileges OR check for users with fleet_* roles assigned
    Affected if Service accounts exist with any Fleet-related roles in the affected version range
  4. Audit recently created API keys for elevated privileges
    Query API key metadata: GET /_security/api_key?with_limited_by=true Look for keys with superuser role or cluster privileges created around the time Fleet-Server was active in 7.13.x-7.14.x
    Affected if API keys exist with super-user or elevated cluster privileges that were not explicitly intended

You are affected if Elasticsearch version is 7.13.0 through 7.14.0 AND Fleet-Server was enabled, as this combination allows service accounts to potentially create API keys with privileges exceeding their assigned role.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 7.14.0
Interim mitigation

Apply the relevant security patch for Fleet-Server. Review and rotate all existing API keys associated with service accounts to ensure no elevated keys were created during the vulnerability window. Consider implementing additional access controls on service account usage.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

7.14.1 or later (7.15.0 recommended)

  1. Upgrade Elasticsearch from version 7.13.0-7.14.0 to version 7.14.1 or later (7.15.0 recommended)
  2. After upgrading, verify that Fleet-Server service account API keys are created with the correct, limited privileges
  3. Audit existing API keys created during the affected version period to ensure none have unexpected super-user privileges
  4. If any overly-privileged API keys are found, revoke them and recreate with proper, restricted permissions
Caveat Review Fleet-Server configuration and API key permissions after upgrade to ensure expected behavior

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

Fix this in Elasticsearch Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.

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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-2021-37937 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