Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Ubuntu’s apport crash-reporting helper could mishandle file reads when used by openjdk-13 crash hooks. A local user could cause private data from another context to be exposed to local users. This is not a remote internet attack, but it matters on shared Ubuntu systems.
Executive priority
Treat this as high priority for shared Ubuntu environments because confidentiality impact is high. It is less urgent for isolated single-user systems. The immediate business task is targeted inventory and vendor-guided patch verification, not broad emergency response.
Technical view
read_file() in apport/hookutils.py followed symbolic links or opened FIFOs. In the openjdk-13 apport hook path, that behavior could disclose private data. The CVSS vector is local, low complexity, low privileges, no user interaction, changed scope, high confidentiality impact, and low availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on Ubuntu systems running affected Canonical apport package versions where openjdk-13 apport hooks are present. Shared servers, developer workstations, jump hosts, and multi-user Linux environments carry higher practical concern than single-user systems.
Exploitation context
The provided sources do not show CISA KEV listing or confirmed active exploitation. The vulnerability requires local access with low privileges. Evidence supports local information disclosure risk, not remote exploitation or arbitrary code execution.
Researcher notes
The key weakness is unsafe file handling in apport hookutils read_file(), mapped to CWE-59 and CWE-61. The source bundle does not provide exploit details, fixed package versions, or a vendor mitigation text, so remediation should be tied to Canonical guidance.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory Ubuntu systems for affected apport versions and openjdk-13 hook presence.
- Check Canonical or Ubuntu package guidance for fixed apport updates.
- Prioritize updates on shared or multi-user Linux systems.
- Limit untrusted local shell access where updates cannot be applied promptly.
- Review crash-reporting data permissions and retention on affected hosts.
Validation and detection
- Confirm installed apport package versions against the affected version list.
- Check whether openjdk-13 apport hooks exist on candidate systems.
- Review vendor advisories or package changelogs for remediation status.
- Verify updated systems no longer report an affected apport version.
- Assess whether shared-user systems contain sensitive crash-report data.
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.
CWE-59: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCWE-61: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-32549 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
- 7.3 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:L
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:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:L24.7Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
7.3HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:L
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/apport/+bug/1917904CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
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.
Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')
Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.
UNIX Symbolic Link (Symlink) Following
UNIX Symbolic Link (Symlink) Following represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.