dbcve.org
DriveApplication · Google

CVE-2022-3421

HIGH · 7.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-10-17
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 64.0 or later.
See remediation →
73/100
Remediation priority · Elevated

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 attacker can pre-create the `/Applications/Google\ Drive.app/Contents/MacOS` directory which is expected to be owned by root to be owned by a non-root user. When the Drive for Desktop installer is run for the first time, it will place a binary in that directory with execute permissions and set its setuid bit. Since the attacker owns the directory, the attacker can replace the binary with a symlink, causing the installer to set the setuid bit on the symlink. When the symlink is executed, it will run with root permissions. We recommend upgrading past version 64.0

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

Google Drive for Desktop installer places a setuid binary in a directory that can be pre-created by a non-root attacker. Since the attacker can control the directory ownership, they can replace the installed binary with a symlink before installation completes, causing the setuid bit to be set on the symlink. When executed, the symlink runs with root privileges, enabling local privilege escalation.

MitigationUpgrade Google Drive for Desktop to version 64.0 or later, which addresses the directory ownership vulnerability in the installer.

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
DriveApplication
Affected:< 64.0

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/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. Determine if Google Drive for Desktop is installed
    Check for Google Drive application files. On Linux, look for /opt/google/drive or ~/.local/share/Google or /usr/local/google. On macOS, check /Applications/Google Drive.app. On Windows, check Program Files for Google Drive.
    Affected if Google Drive for Desktop is installed and the version is below 64.0
  2. Identify the installed Google Drive version
    Run the version check command for your platform. On Linux, /opt/google/drive/nacl64 --version or check the version file in the installation directory. On macOS, right-click Google Drive.app and select Get Info to see the version. On Windows, right-click the Google Drive icon in system tray and select Help > About.
    Affected if The reported version number is less than 64.0
  3. Locate setuid binaries in Google Drive installation directories
    Find all executables with the setuid bit set within Google Drive installation paths. Use: find /opt/google -perm -4000 2>/dev/null or find "$HOME"/.local/share/Google -perm -4000 2>/dev/null on Linux. On macOS, check /Applications/Google Drive.app contents for files with setuid.
    Affected if Any executable file owned by root with the setuid bit set is found within Google Drive directories
  4. Check for suspicious symlinks in Google Drive directories
    Examine Google Drive installation directories for symlinks that point outside the normal installation path. Use: ls -la /opt/google/drive/ or check the Google Drive user data directory for any symlinks with unexpected targets.
    Affected if Symlinks exist in Google Drive directories that point to arbitrary files or locations, particularly if they have elevated permissions

A user is affected if Google Drive for Desktop version below 64.0 is installed and any setuid binaries or suspicious symlinks are found within the Google Drive installation or data directories.

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 64.0 or later
Fixed in 64.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Google Drive for Desktop to version 64.0 or later, which addresses the directory ownership vulnerability in the installer.

Recommended fix High confidence

64.0 or later

  1. Update Google Drive for Desktop to version 64.0 or later
  2. Verify the installation completed successfully by checking the installed version in the application

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

Fix this in Drive Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,490
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,984.

Scan for this in your stack

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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-2022-3421 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