ZeroshellOperating system

CVE-2021-41738

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-06-11
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
ZeroShell 3.9.5 has a command injection vulnerability in /cgi-bin/kerbynet IP parameter, which may allow an authenticated attacker to execute system commands.

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

ZeroShell 3.9.5 contains a command injection vulnerability in the /cgi-bin/kerbynet endpoint via the IP parameter. An attacker with valid authentication can inject arbitrary system commands through unsanitized input, potentially leading to full system compromise.

MitigationImplement strict input validation and sanitization on all user-supplied parameters, particularly the IP parameter in /cgi-bin/kerbynet. Consider applying the latest vendor patch or upgrading to a patched version if available.

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
ZeroshellOperating system
Affected:= 3.9.5

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 the installed ZeroShell version
    Access the ZeroShell administrative interface or check the system information page to view the running version number
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 3.9.5
  2. Verify the /cgi-bin/kerbynet endpoint exists
    Check if the CGI script kerbynet is present in the cgi-bin directory on the web server
    Affected if The endpoint exists and is accessible via HTTP/HTTPS
  3. Confirm authentication is enabled for the vulnerable endpoint
    Review the web server or ZeroShell configuration to verify whether authentication is required to access /cgi-bin/kerbynet
    Affected if Valid authentication can be obtained (whether default credentials, weak credentials, or a compromised account)
  4. Check if the IP parameter is processed by kerbynet
    Examine the kerbynet CGI script or its configuration to determine if it accepts and processes an 'IP' parameter without sanitization
    Affected if The IP parameter is accepted and used in system calls without input validation

You are affected if you are running ZeroShell version 3.9.5, the /cgi-bin/kerbynet endpoint is accessible, and an attacker can authenticate to submit unsanitized input to the IP parameter.

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

Implement strict input validation and sanitization on all user-supplied parameters, particularly the IP parameter in /cgi-bin/kerbynet. Consider applying the latest vendor patch or upgrading to a patched version if available.

Fix this in Zeroshell Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,130
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Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-41738 — 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 sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-41738 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