How severe is CVE-2021-36980?

CVE-2021-36980 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.

Is CVE-2021-36980 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (64th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2021-36980?

CVE-2021-36980 affects Openvswitch. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2021-36980?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.

When was CVE-2021-36980 published?

CVE-2021-36980 was published on 2021-07-20 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2021-36980

CVE-2021-36980 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Openvswitch with a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5. 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-416.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 5.5)
CVSS v2: 4.3
EPSS exploit prediction: 1% (64th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-416
Affected product: Openvswitch
Published: 2021-07-20
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

Open vSwitch (aka openvswitch) 2.11.0 through 2.15.0 has a use-after-free in decode_NXAST_RAW_ENCAP (called from ofpact_decode and ofpacts_decode) during the decoding of a RAW_ENCAP action.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2021-36980?: Open vSwitch (aka openvswitch) 2.11.0 through 2.15.0 has a use-after-free in decode_NXAST_RAW_ENCAP (called from ofpact_decode and ofpacts_decode) during the decoding of a RAW_ENCAP action.
How severe is CVE-2021-36980?: CVE-2021-36980 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.
Is CVE-2021-36980 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (64th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2021-36980?: CVE-2021-36980 affects Openvswitch. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2021-36980?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2021-36980 published?: CVE-2021-36980 was published on 2021-07-20 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:openvswitch:openvswitch:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

More vulnerabilities in Openvswitch

CVE-2022-4338 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): An integer underflow in Organization Specific TLV was found in various versions of OpenvSwitch.
CVE-2022-4337 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): An out-of-bounds read in Organization Specific TLV was found in various versions of OpenvSwitch.
CVE-2017-9265 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): In Open vSwitch (OvS) v2.7.0, there is a buffer over-read while parsing the group mod OpenFlow message sent from the…
CVE-2017-9264 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): In lib/conntrack.c in the firewall implementation in Open vSwitch (OvS) 2.6.1, there is a buffer over-read while…
CVE-2017-9214 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): In Open vSwitch (OvS) 2.7.0, while parsing an OFPT_QUEUE_GET_CONFIG_REPLY type OFP 1.0 message, there is a buffer…
CVE-2016-2074 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): Buffer overflow in lib/flow.c in ovs-vswitchd in Open vSwitch 2.2.x and 2.3.x before 2.3.3 and 2.4.x before 2.4.1…

All CVEs affecting Openvswitch →

Other CWE-416 (Use After Free) vulnerabilities

CVE-2026-13782 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Use after free in Browser in Google Chrome prior to 150.0.7871.47 allowed a remote attacker who had compromised the…
CVE-2026-4725 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Sandbox escape due to use-after-free in the Graphics: Canvas2D component. This vulnerability was fixed in Firefox 149…
CVE-2026-4688 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Sandbox escape due to use-after-free in the Disability Access APIs component. This vulnerability was fixed in Firefox…
CVE-2025-24085 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): A use after free issue was addressed with improved memory management. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.3 and iPadOS 18.3,…
CVE-2024-43102 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Concurrent removals of certain anonymous shared memory mappings by using the UMTX_SHM_DESTROY sub-request of…
CVE-2021-32495 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Radare2 has a use-after-free vulnerability in pyc parser's get_none_object function. Attacker can read freed memory…

Browse all CWE-416 (Use After Free) vulnerabilities →