CVE-2021-33321: Com.liferay.portal.impl Liferay Portal And Liferay DXP Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-jfch-m2x3-2v66
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-640
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2021-33321 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) liferay portal and liferay dxp vulnerability (CWE-640: Weak Password Recovery Mechanism for Forgotten Password) affecting Com.liferay.portal.impl libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves liferay portal and liferay dxp insecure default configuration. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 5.11.0, 7.3.3.

CVE-2021-33321 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2021-33321
GHSA Identifier GHSA-jfch-m2x3-2v66
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-640: Weak Password Recovery Mechanism for Forgotten Password
Affected Product Com.liferay.portal.impl
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.5

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity None (I:N)
Availability None (A:N)

How to Fix CVE-2021-33321

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Com.liferay.portal.impl dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

com.liferay.portal:com.liferay.portal.impl fixed: 5.11.0 
<dependency>
    <groupId>com.liferay.portal</groupId>
    <artifactId>com.liferay.portal.impl</artifactId>
    <version>5.11.0</version>
</dependency>
com.liferay.portal:release.portal.bom fixed: 7.3.3 
<dependency>
    <groupId>com.liferay.portal</groupId>
    <artifactId>release.portal.bom</artifactId>
    <version>7.3.3</version>
</dependency>
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=com.liferay.portal

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2021-33321, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=com.liferay.portal

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Com.liferay.portal.impl in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 5.11.0), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=com.liferay.portal command inspects the resolved dependency graph declared in your project's POM files; it does not perform automated security scanning or inspect runtime dynamic classpaths. Always verify runtime container classpaths and shaded JARs.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-640: Weak Password Recovery Mechanism for Forgotten Password, where the product contains a mechanism for users to recover or change their passwords without knowing the original password, but the mechanism is weak. In Com.liferay.portal.impl, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

Insecure default configuration in portal services implementation before 5.11.0 in Liferay Portal 6.2.3 through 7.3.2, and Liferay DXP before 7.3, allows remote attackers to enumerate user email address via the forgot password functionality. The portal.property login.secure.forgot.password should be defaulted to true.

CVE-2021-33321 Affected Com.liferay.portal.impl Versions

2 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
5.11.07.3.3
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
com.liferay.portal:com.liferay.portal.impl
maven/com.liferay.portal/com.liferay.portal.impl
Maven
< 5.11.0
5.11.0
com.liferay.portal:release.portal.bom
maven/com.liferay.portal/release.portal.bom
Maven
< 7.3.3
7.3.3

References

NVD — CVE-2021-33321 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-33321
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/liferay/liferay-portal/commit/06df28c5ad618afed967fa485418e6cc29c70f38
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/liferay/liferay-portal/commit/37de1d78d9b1c4a473e3233a6ea146c741075e18
Com.liferay.portal.impl Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/liferay/liferay-portal
help.liferay.com/hc/en-us/articles/3... WEB
https://help.liferay.com/hc/en-us/articles/360050785632
Com.liferay.portal.impl Security Information SECURITY
https://portal.liferay.dev/learn/security/known-vulnerabilities/-/asset_publisher/HbL5mxmVrnXW/content/id/120748055

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2021-33321?
CVE-2021-33321 is a security vulnerability in Com.liferay.portal.impl involving Liferay Portal and Liferay DXP insecure default configuration under CWE-640: Weak Password Recovery Mechanism for Forgotten Password.
Which Com.liferay.portal.impl versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 5.11.0, 7.3.3 across affected packages: com.liferay.portal:com.liferay.portal.impl, com.liferay.portal:release.portal.bom.
What version fixes CVE-2021-33321?
Upgrading to 5.11.0, 7.3.3 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is com.liferay.portal.impl affected?
Yes, com.liferay.portal:com.liferay.portal.impl is affected in releases prior to 5.11.0. Upgrade your dependency to 5.11.0 or later.
Is release.portal.bom affected?
Yes, com.liferay.portal:release.portal.bom is affected in releases prior to 7.3.3. Upgrade your dependency to 7.3.3 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2021-33321?
CVE-2021-33321 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2021-33321?
CVE-2021-33321 is classified under CWE-640: Weak Password Recovery Mechanism for Forgotten Password (The product contains a mechanism for users to recover or change their passwords without knowing the original password, but the mechanism is weak.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2021-33321?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=com.liferay.portal'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-jfch-m2x3-2v66",
  "modified" : "2025-06-27T21:40:15Z",
  "published" : "2022-05-24T19:09:46Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2021-33321" ],
  "summary" : "Liferay Portal and Liferay DXP insecure default configuration",
  "details" : "Insecure default configuration in portal services implementation before 5.11.0 in Liferay Portal 6.2.3 through 7.3.2, and Liferay DXP before 7.3, allows remote attackers to enumerate user email address via the forgot password functionality. The portal.property login.secure.forgot.password should be defaulted to true.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "com.liferay.portal:com.liferay.portal.impl"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "5.11.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "com.liferay.portal:release.portal.bom"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "7.3.3"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-33321"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/liferay/liferay-portal/commit/06df28c5ad618afed967fa485418e6cc29c70f38"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/liferay/liferay-portal/commit/37de1d78d9b1c4a473e3233a6ea146c741075e18"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/liferay/liferay-portal"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://help.liferay.com/hc/en-us/articles/360050785632"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://portal.liferay.dev/learn/security/known-vulnerabilities/-/asset_publisher/HbL5mxmVrnXW/content/id/120748055"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-640" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2025-06-27T21:40:15Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2021-08-03T19:15:00Z"
  }
}