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Vulnerability record · CVE-2021-42561 · published 12 January 2022

CVE-2021-42561: Mitre caldera injection vulnerability

Mitre · Caldera

An issue was discovered in CALDERA 2.8.1. When activated, the Human plugin passes the unsanitized name parameter to a python "os.system" function. This allows attackers to use shell metacharacters (e.g., backticks "``" or dollar parenthesis "$()" ) in order to escape the current command and execute arbitrary shell commands.

8.8 CVSS 3.1 High EPSS 20% · top 2.7% CWE-74 · Injection
8.8CVSS 3.1 base score, v2 9.0
20%EPSS exploitation probability, 30 days
NoNot in CISA KEV
1Affected product versions listed by NVD
4References, 2 tagged exploit
17 Jun 2026Last modified by NVD

Description

An issue was discovered in CALDERA 2.8.1. When activated, the Human plugin passes the unsanitized name parameter to a python "os.system" function. This allows attackers to use shell metacharacters (e.g., backticks "``" or dollar parenthesis "$()" ) in order to escape the current command and execute arbitrary shell commands.

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected products

1 vulnerable configurations from NVD's CPE data, grouped by vendor and product.

References

LinkTags
https://github.com/DrunkenShells/Disclosures/tree/master/CVE-2021-42561-Command%20Injection%20Via%20the%20Human%20Plugin ExploitThird Party Advisory
https://github.com/mitre/caldera/releases Release NotesThird Party Advisory
https://github.com/DrunkenShells/Disclosures/tree/master/CVE-2021-42561-Command%20Injection%20Via%20the%20Human%20Plugin ExploitThird Party Advisory
https://github.com/mitre/caldera/releases Release NotesThird Party Advisory

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Related vulnerabilities

Same products first, then exploited flaws of the same weakness class.

8.8CVE-2021-42559Mitre caldera command injection vulnerabilityAn issue was discovered in CALDERA 2.8.1. It contains multiple startup "requirements" that execute commands when starting the server. Because these c…EPSS 2.0%8.8CVE-2021-42560Mitre caldera xml external entity (xxe) vulnerabilityAn issue was discovered in CALDERA 2.9.0. The Debrief plugin receives base64 encoded "SVG" parameters when generating a PDF document. These SVG docum…EPSS 2.1%8.8CVE-2020-19907Mitre caldera os command injection vulnerabilityA command injection vulnerability in the sandcat plugin of Caldera 2.3.1 and earlier allows authenticated attackers to execute any command or service.EPSS 3.0%8.1CVE-2021-42562Mitre caldera improper privilege management vulnerabilityAn issue was discovered in CALDERA 2.8.1. It does not properly segregate user privileges, resulting in non-admin users having access to read and modi…EPSS 1.2%6.1CVE-2022-40606Mitre caldera cross-site scripting vulnerabilityMITRE CALDERA before 4.1.0 allows XSS in the Operations tab and/or Debrief plugin via a crafted operation name, a different vulnerability than CVE-20…EPSS 0.46%6.1CVE-2022-40605Mitre caldera cross-site scripting vulnerabilityMITRE CALDERA before 4.1.0 allows XSS in the Operations tab and/or Debrief plugin via a crafted operation name, a different vulnerability than CVE-20…EPSS 0.46%6.1CVE-2021-42558Mitre caldera cross-site scripting vulnerabilityAn issue was discovered in CALDERA 2.8.1. It contains multiple reflected, stored, and self XSS vulnerabilities that may be exploited by authenticated…EPSS 1.1%5.4CVE-2022-41139Mitre caldera cross-site scripting vulnerabilityMITRE CALDERA 4.1.0 allows stored XSS via app.contact.gist (aka the gist contact configuration field), leading to execution of arbitrary commands on …EPSS 0.57%

Source: NIST National Vulnerability Database (record CVE-2021-42561), CISA KEV, FIRST EPSS (scores of 2026-09-27). This page is refreshed as NVD updates the record.