Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Celery systems that store task results could be abused if someone can tamper with the result database or cache. The malicious data stays there until Celery reads it, then commands may run. This is serious where attackers or compromised services can write to the backend.
Executive priority
Treat this as a high-priority dependency and backend-access control issue. The vulnerability can lead to full system compromise, but the attacker needs a path to alter Celery backend metadata. Prioritize internet-exposed or broadly shared result stores first.
Technical view
Celery before 5.2.2 trusted serialized task metadata in result backends. If an attacker can access or alter backend metadata, deserialization during metadata reads can trigger stored command injection. The CVSS vector indicates network reachability, high attack complexity, low privileges, no user interaction, and high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely in Python applications using Celery before 5.2.2 with a result backend whose metadata can be modified by a low-privileged user, compromised app component, or exposed backend. Sources do not indicate unrelated Celery deployments are affected.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or confirmed active exploitation. Exploitation is plausible only where an attacker can gain access to or manipulate metadata in a Celery backend, then waits for normal metadata reads.
Researcher notes
The key condition is write or manipulation access to Celery backend metadata. The provided sources name Celery before 5.2.2 and a stored command injection risk, but do not provide KEV evidence, public exploit confirmation, or detailed product-specific exposure beyond Celery.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade Celery to 5.2.2 or later where supported by the application.
- Restrict result backend access to trusted application components only.
- Rotate credentials for exposed result stores after suspected compromise.
- Review vendor and distribution advisories for packaging-specific fixes.
- Disable or avoid result storage where the application does not need it.
Validation and detection
- Inventory applications and containers for Celery versions before 5.2.2.
- Identify configured Celery result backends and their access controls.
- Check whether backend credentials are shared with untrusted services or users.
- Review backend logs for unexpected metadata writes or administrative access.
- Confirm upgraded packages through dependency lockfiles and runtime package inspection.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
Execution behavior lookup
The CVE wording references code or command execution, so execution technique review may help defensive triage. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-23727 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 7.5 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:P/RL:O/RC:C
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:P/RL:O/RC:C1.65.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
7.5HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:P/RL:O/RC:C
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-PYTHON-CELERY-2314953CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/celery/celery/blob/master/Changelog.rst%23522CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- FEDORA-2022-1dae017601CVE reference · vendor-advisory, x_refsource_FEDORA
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.