dbcve.org
Netweaver AbapApplication · Sap

CVE-2021-38178

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-10-12
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
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
The software logistics system of SAP NetWeaver AS ABAP and ABAP Platform versions - 700, 701, 702, 710, 730, 731, 740, 750, 751, 752, 753, 754, 755, 756, enables a malicious user to transfer ABAP code artifacts or content, by-passing the established quality gates. By this vulnerability malicious code can reach quality and production, and can compromise the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the system and its data.

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

The software logistics system in SAP NetWeaver AS ABAP and ABAP Platform (versions 700-756) contains a vulnerability that allows a malicious user to bypass established quality gates and transfer ABAP code artifacts directly to quality and production systems. This compromises the transport mechanism and enables malicious code to reach production, threatening confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

MitigationApply the relevant SAP security notes/patches for this vulnerability to fix the quality gate bypass in the transport system, and verify that transports require proper authorization checks.

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:= 700= 701= 702= 710= 730= 731= 740= 750= 751= 752= 753= 754
Netweaver Application Server AbapApplication
Affected:= 700= 701= 702= 710= 730= 731= 740= 750= 751= 752= 753= 754

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. Identify installed ABAP version
    Log into the SAP system and use transaction SM51 (Release Notes) or execute the report SAPSINFO to display the SAP NetWeaver AS ABAP version and release information
    Affected if The version matches one of the affected releases: 700, 701, 702, 710, 730, 731, 740, 750, 751, 752, 753, or 754
  2. Verify transport configuration
    Review the transport management configuration using transaction STMS (Transport Management System). Check if quality gates are properly configured for transport routes and if the CTS (Change and Transport System) settings enforce proper approval workflows
    Affected if Quality gates in the transport routes are disabled, bypassed, or not properly enforced for movement of ABAP code objects to quality or production systems
  3. Review transport authorization controls
    Use transaction SE03 (Transport Organizer Tools) or review the TMS configuration (transaction STMS) to check if authorization checks are required for importing transports into production. Verify that only authorized users can release transports
    Affected if Authorization checks for transport imports are not enforced, allowing unauthorized users to push code directly to production systems
  4. Audit recent transport movements
    Examine the transport log (transaction SE01 or STMS transport logs) to identify any transports that bypassed quality verification steps or were imported directly into production without going through the standard approval process
    Affected if Transports exist in the log that moved directly to production systems without passing through quality assurance verification steps

A system is affected if it runs SAP NetWeaver AS ABAP version 700-754 and has not applied the relevant security patches, with quality gate bypasses still possible in the transport mechanism.

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 security notes/patches for this vulnerability to fix the quality gate bypass in the transport system, and verify that transports require proper authorization checks.

Fix this in Netweaver Abap Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,440
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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-2021-38178 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