Derive Com ImplApplication · Derive Com Impl Project
CVE-2021-45681
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 · uneditedAn issue was discovered in the derive-com-impl crate before 0.1.2 for Rust. An invalid reference (and memory corruption) can occur because AddRef might not be called before returning a pointer.
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 confidenceA COM reference counting bug in the derive-com-impl Rust crate (versions before 0.1.2) where the generated code fails to call AddRef before returning a pointer. This causes incorrect reference counts, potentially leading to use-after-free or memory corruption when objects are prematurely freed while still in use by callers.
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
Derive Com ImplApplication
< 0.1.2CVSS 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
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Locate derive-com-impl in project dependenciesSearch your project's Cargo.toml file for 'derive-com-impl' under the [dependencies] or [dev-dependencies] section, or search Cargo.lock for 'derive-com-impl'Affected if The crate is listed as a direct or transitive dependency
-
Identify the installed versionCheck the version number next to derive-com-impl in Cargo.lock, or run 'cargo tree -p derive-com-impl' to see the resolved versionAffected if The version is less than 0.1.2 (e.g., 0.1.0, 0.1.1, or any version starting with 0.0.x)
-
Verify COM interface generation is usedSearch your codebase for uses of #[derive(ComInterface)] or similar COM-related derive macros that would invoke the affected crateAffected if Your project generates COM interface implementations using this crate
-
Inspect generated code for AddRef callsBuild your project with 'cargo expand' or examine the target directory for the expanded Rust code of COM interface implementations, looking for methods that return interface pointers without calling AddRef firstAffected if Generated interface methods return raw pointers without preceding AddRef calls, indicating the bug is present
You are affected if your project uses the derive-com-impl crate at a version below 0.1.2 and generates COM interface code that returns pointers.
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.
dbcve · scoped0.1.2
Update the derive-com-impl crate to version 0.1.2 or later which includes the fix for proper AddRef calls before pointer return.
0.1.2
- Locate the derive-com-impl dependency in your Cargo.toml file
- Update the version specification for derive-com-impl to version 0.1.2 or later (e.g., derive-com-impl = "0.1.2")
- Run `cargo update derive-com-impl` or `cargo build` to fetch and compile the fixed version
- Verify the update was successful by checking `cargo tree | grep derive-com-impl`
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Derive Com Impl
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,080.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-45681 — 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-2021-45681 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
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.
- 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