CVE-2021-40501
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 · uneditedSAP ABAP Platform Kernel - versions 7.77, 7.81, 7.85, 7.86, does not perform necessary authorization checks for an authenticated business user, resulting in escalation of privileges. That means this business user is able to read and modify data beyond the vulnerable system. However, the attacker can neither significantly reduce the performance of the system nor stop the system.
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 confidenceSAP ABAP Platform Kernel versions 7.77, 7.81, 7.85, and 7.86 fail to perform necessary authorization checks for authenticated business users, allowing privilege escalation where users can read and modify data beyond their authorized scope.
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= 7.77= 7.81= 7.85= 7.86CVSS 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
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
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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Identify SAP ABAP Platform Kernel versionLog into the SAP system and execute transaction code SM51. The kernel release version is displayed in the initial screen under 'Release' or 'Kernel Release'.Affected if The displayed kernel version matches exactly 7.77, 7.81, 7.85, or 7.86
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Confirm kernel patch levelIn transaction SM51, double-click on the kernel process or use menu path System -> System Information to view the full kernel version string including patch level (e.g., 7.77 PL0, 7.77 PL1).Affected if The base version is exactly 7.77, 7.81, 7.85, or 7.86 regardless of patch level
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Verify kernel via transaction KRNDUMPExecute transaction KRNDUMP if available in your system, or use transaction SAINT to view installed software components and locate the SAP_BASIS component which contains the kernel version information.Affected if The kernel version shown corresponds to 7.77, 7.81, 7.85, or 7.86
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Cross-check via SAP system informationExecute transaction SYST or use the System -> Status menu path (transaction SM37 can also show system version info). Look for the 'Kernel' field displaying the exact release number.Affected if The kernel release field shows exactly 7.77, 7.81, 7.85, or 7.86
You are affected if your SAP ABAP Platform Kernel is running exactly version 7.77, 7.81, 7.85, or 7.86, as these specific versions contain the authorization bypass flaw.
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 dataApply the relevant SAP security notes/patches for the kernel authorization bypass and review user authorization roles to ensure proper segregation of duties.
- Consultation8.0 h
- Implementation16.0 h
- Testing12.0 h
- Review / QA8.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $12,352.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-40501 — 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-2021-40501 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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