How severe is CVE-2021-36163?

CVE-2021-36163 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2021-36163 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 3% (85th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2021-36163?

CVE-2021-36163 affects Apache Dubbo. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2021-36163?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

When was CVE-2021-36163 published?

CVE-2021-36163 was published on 2021-09-07 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2021-36163

CVE-2021-36163 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Apache Dubbo with a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-502.

Key facts

Severity: Critical (CVSS 3.x base score 9.8)
CVSS v2: 7.5
EPSS exploit prediction: 3% (85th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-502
Affected product: Apache Dubbo
Published: 2021-09-07
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

In Apache Dubbo, users may choose to use the Hessian protocol. The Hessian protocol is implemented on top of HTTP and passes the body of a POST request directly to a HessianSkeleton: New HessianSkeleton are created without any configuration of the serialization factory and therefore without applying the dubbo properties for applying allowed or blocked type lists. In addition, the generic service is always exposed and therefore attackers do not need to figure out a valid service/method name pair. This is fixed in 2.7.13, 2.6.10.1

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2021-36163?: In Apache Dubbo, users may choose to use the Hessian protocol. The Hessian protocol is implemented on top of HTTP and passes the body of a POST request directly to a HessianSkeleton: New HessianSkeleton are created without any configuration of the serialization factory and therefore without applying the dubbo properties for applying allowed or blocked type lists. In addition, the generic service is always exposed and therefore attackers do not need to figure out a valid service/method name pair. This is fixed in 2.7.13, 2.6.10.1
How severe is CVE-2021-36163?: CVE-2021-36163 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2021-36163 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 3% (85th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2021-36163?: CVE-2021-36163 affects Apache Dubbo. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2021-36163?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2021-36163 published?: CVE-2021-36163 was published on 2021-09-07 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r8d0adc057bb15a37199502cc366f4b1164c9c536ce28e4defdb428c0%40%3Cdev.dubbo.apache.org%3E

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:apache:dubbo:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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