Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This flaw lets a remote attacker who already has Jira Administrator privileges on vulnerable self-managed Jira Service Management run Java code or system commands through the Email Template feature. The business risk is full server compromise if an admin account is abused or malicious.
Executive priority
Prioritize remediation for internet-facing or high-value Jira Service Management instances, especially where many users hold administrator rights. The privilege requirement lowers likelihood, but successful abuse can compromise the underlying server.
Technical view
CVE-2021-39115 is a server-side template injection issue, classified as CWE-96, in Atlassian Jira Service Management Server and Data Center Email Templates. CVSS 3.1 is 7.2: network reachable, low complexity, high privileges required, no user interaction, with high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is likely limited to self-managed Jira Service Management Server or Data Center instances in the affected ranges: before 4.13.9, and 4.14.0 before 4.18.0. The provided sources do not identify Jira Cloud as affected.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or other evidence of active exploitation. Practical abuse requires Jira Administrator access, so the main concern is compromised administrator credentials, excessive admin grants, or insider misuse.
Researcher notes
The vulnerability is SSTI in the Email Template feature with high-privilege preconditions. Validate by version and configuration review, not by attempting exploit payloads. Evidence is limited to the CVE record and Atlassian issue reference provided.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade affected instances to a non-vulnerable version, such as 4.13.9 or 4.18.0 or later.
- If upgrade timing is constrained, check Atlassian guidance for supported temporary controls.
- Restrict Jira Administrator membership to verified business need.
- Review administrator account security, including MFA and credential hygiene.
- Monitor Email Template changes and unusual server-side execution indicators.
Validation and detection
- Inventory all Jira Service Management Server and Data Center instances.
- Confirm each instance version is outside the affected ranges.
- Review Jira Administrator group membership and recent privilege changes.
- Check audit logs for Email Template modifications by administrator accounts.
- Verify upgrade completion in staging and production records.
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-96: Code execution behavior lookup
Code execution and unsafe deserialization weaknesses often justify reviewing execution behavior and process telemetry. 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-2021-39115 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
- 7.2 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H1.25.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
7.2HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://jira.atlassian.com/browse/JSDSERVER-8665CVE 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 Neutralization of Directives in Statically Saved Code ('Static Code Injection')
Improper Neutralization of Directives in Statically Saved Code ('Static Code Injection') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.