CVE-2021-4441: Software Security Vulnerability Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-c299-229x-w5c5
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CVSS 5.5
CWE-476
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2021-4441 is a MODERATE (CVSS 5.5) security vulnerability vulnerability (CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference) affecting Software libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The weakness occurs when the product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is null.. Remediation is available in the latest vendor maintenance releases.

CVE-2021-4441 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2021-4441
GHSA Identifier GHSA-c299-229x-w5c5
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 5.5
CWE Classification CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference
Affected Product Software
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 5.5

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2021-4441

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

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

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2021-4441, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree

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

Note: The mvn dependency:tree 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-476: NULL Pointer Dereference, where the product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is null. In Software, 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

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: spi: spi-zynq-qspi: Fix a NULL pointer dereference in zynq_qspi_exec_mem_op() In zynq_qspi_exec_mem_op(), kzalloc() is directly used in memset(), which could lead to a NULL pointer dereference on failure of kzalloc(). Fix this bug by adding a check of tmpbuf. This bug was found by a static analyzer. The analysis employs differential checking to identify inconsistent security operations (e.g., checks or kfrees) between two code paths and confirms that the inconsistent operations are not recovered in the current function or the callers, so they constitute bugs. Note that, as a bug found by static analysis, it can be a false positive or hard to trigger. Multiple researchers have cross-reviewed the bug. Builds with CONFIG_SPI_ZYNQ_QSPI=m show no new warnings, and our static analyzer no longer warns about this code.

References

NVD — CVE-2021-4441 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-4441
git.kernel.org/stable/c/2efece1368... WEB
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2efece1368aeee2d2552c7ec36aeb676c4d4c95f
git.kernel.org/stable/c/3c32405d64... WEB
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3c32405d6474a21f7d742828e73c13e326dcae82
git.kernel.org/stable/c/ab3824427b... WEB
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ab3824427b848da10e9fe2727f035bbeecae6ff4
git.kernel.org/stable/c/b9dd08cbeb... WEB
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b9dd08cbebe0c593c49bf86d2012a431494e54cb
git.kernel.org/stable/c/df14d2bed8... WEB
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/df14d2bed8e2455878e046e67123d9ecb2e79056

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2021-4441?
CVE-2021-4441 is a security vulnerability in Software classified as a security vulnerability vulnerability under CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference.
Which Software versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to current release patches.
What version fixes CVE-2021-4441?
Upgrading to current release patches (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2021-4441?
CVE-2021-4441 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 5.5 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2021-4441?
CVE-2021-4441 is classified under CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference (The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2021-4441?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree'. 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 
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  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-c299-229x-w5c5",
  "modified" : "2024-09-11T18:31:02Z",
  "published" : "2024-08-22T03:31:33Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2021-4441" ],
  "details" : "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nspi: spi-zynq-qspi: Fix a NULL pointer dereference in zynq_qspi_exec_mem_op()\n\nIn zynq_qspi_exec_mem_op(), kzalloc() is directly used in memset(),\nwhich could lead to a NULL pointer dereference on failure of\nkzalloc().\n\nFix this bug by adding a check of tmpbuf.\n\nThis bug was found by a static analyzer. The analysis employs\ndifferential checking to identify inconsistent security operations\n(e.g., checks or kfrees) between two code paths and confirms that the\ninconsistent operations are not recovered in the current function or\nthe callers, so they constitute bugs.\n\nNote that, as a bug found by static analysis, it can be a false\npositive or hard to trigger. Multiple researchers have cross-reviewed\nthe bug.\n\nBuilds with CONFIG_SPI_ZYNQ_QSPI=m show no new warnings,\nand our static analyzer no longer warns about this code.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-4441"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2efece1368aeee2d2552c7ec36aeb676c4d4c95f"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3c32405d6474a21f7d742828e73c13e326dcae82"
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    "type" : "WEB",
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  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/df14d2bed8e2455878e046e67123d9ecb2e79056"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-476" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : false,
    "github_reviewed_at" : null,
    "nvd_published_at" : "2024-08-22T02:15:04Z"
  }
}