Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This flaw lets an authenticated guest user in SolarWinds Orion gain Administrator privileges. For organizations still running Orion Platform 2020.2.5 or earlier, it could turn a low-privilege account into full administrative control of the monitoring platform.
Executive priority
High priority for any organization using affected Orion versions. The business risk is disproportionate because a guest-level foothold could become administrative control over a core monitoring platform, potentially exposing sensitive infrastructure visibility and control paths.
Technical view
CVE-2021-35213 is an improper access control issue in Orion Platform User Setting. The CVSS 3.1 vector is AV:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:L, indicating low complexity, required low privileges, no user interaction, changed scope, and high confidentiality and integrity impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to SolarWinds Orion Platform 2020.2.5 and previous versions. The bundle indicates authentication is required and the CVSS vector indicates adjacent-network attack requirements. Internet exposure, default configuration dependence, and exact affected deployment patterns are not provided.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not identify active exploitation, and the CVE is not marked as CISA KEV. Treat exploitation as plausible where an attacker has guest or low-privileged access, but do not assume in-the-wild activity from these sources alone.
Researcher notes
Key constraints are authentication required, adjacent-network vector, and affected versions listed as 2020.2.5 and previous. The bundle does not provide exploit mechanics, proof-of-concept status, or detailed fixed build evidence beyond vendor advisory and release-note references.
Mitigation direction
- Identify all Orion Platform instances and their exact versions.
- Prioritize remediation for Orion Platform 2020.2.5 and earlier.
- Review SolarWinds advisory and 2020.2.6 release notes for vendor-directed fixes.
- Restrict guest and low-privileged Orion access until remediation is confirmed.
- Review Orion administrator accounts for unexpected privilege changes.
Validation and detection
- Confirm no production Orion instance runs 2020.2.5 or earlier.
- Review Orion user roles for unauthorized Administrator assignments.
- Check logs for recent guest or low-privileged account changes.
- Verify remediation status against SolarWinds security advisory guidance.
- Document any compensating access controls around Orion administration.
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-284: Authorization and privilege behavior lookup
Authorization weaknesses can support privilege escalation and valid-account review, depending on exploit path. 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 lookupPrivilege behavior lookup
The CVE wording references privilege impact, so privilege escalation and authorization behavior review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-35213 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
- 8.9 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/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:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:L2.36Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
8.9HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:L
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://documentation.solarwinds.com/en/success_center/orionplatform/content/core-secure-configuration.htmCVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://documentation.solarwinds.com/en/success_center/orionplatform/content/release_notes/orion_platform_2020-2-6_release_notes.htmCVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://www.solarwinds.com/trust-center/security-advisories/cve-2021-35213CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-21-1244/CVE 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 Access Control
Improper Access Control represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.