Go to homepageCyberStrike

Menu

Star on GitHub · 3.2k
Sign inDownload

CVE-2021-3042

7.8 · HIGH

A local privilege escalation (PE) vulnerability exists in the Palo Alto Networks Cortex XDR agent on Windows platforms that enables an authenticated local Windows user to execute programs with SYST…

Published Jul 15, 2021CWE-427EPSS 0.25%

Overview

CVE-2021-3042 is a high-severity vulnerability. It was published on July 15, 2021 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 (HIGH).

This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8, rated HIGH. It requires local or adjacent network access to exploit. Some level of privileges is required for exploitation.

Technical description

A local privilege escalation (PE) vulnerability exists in the Palo Alto Networks Cortex XDR agent on Windows platforms that enables an authenticated local Windows user to execute programs with SYSTEM privileges. Exploiting this vulnerability requires the user to have file creation privilege in the Windows root directory (such as C:\). This issue impacts: All versions of Cortex XDR agent 6.1 without content update 181 or a later version; All versions of Cortex XDR agent 7.2 without content update 181 or a later version; All versions of Cortex XDR agent 7.3 without content update 181 or a later version. Cortex XDR agent 5.0 versions are not impacted by this issue. Content updates are required to resolve this issue and are automatically applied for the agent.

Remediation

Check the references section for vendor advisories, patches, and mitigation guidance. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.

References

Refsecurity.paloaltonetworks.com/CVE-2021-3042Refsecurity.paloaltonetworks.com/CVE-2021-3042

How CyberStrike helps

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2021-3042?

CVE-2021-3042 is a high-severity vulnerability. It was published on July 15, 2021 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 (HIGH).

How severe is CVE-2021-3042?

This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8, rated HIGH. It requires local or adjacent network access to exploit. Some level of privileges is required for exploitation.

How do I fix or remediate CVE-2021-3042?

Check the references section for vendor advisories, patches, and mitigation guidance. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.

How can CyberStrike help with CVE-2021-3042?

CyberStrike is an open-source, AI-augmented pentesting engine. Rather than flag a version number, it tests whether an issue like CVE-2021-3042 is actually reachable in your own applications and APIs, then verifies each finding before reporting it. That tells you if the weakness is a real, exploitable risk in your environment or a false positive you can safely deprioritize.

Related HIGH CVEs from 2021

View all
Browse by year2026202520242023202220212020201920182017201620152014201320122011201020092008200720062005200420032002200120001999