CVE-2021-21449 – CVE-2021-21449 is a memory corruption vulnerabi... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2021-21449?

CVE-2021-21449 has a CVSS score of 8.8 (HIGH). CVE-2021-21449 is a memory corruption vulnerability in SAP 3D Visual Enterprise Viewer version 9 caused by improper input validation when processing IFF files. An attacker can craft a malicious IFF file that crashes the application when opened, causing temporary denial of service. Users who open IFF files from untrusted sources are affected.

📋 TL;DR

CVE-2021-21449 is a memory corruption vulnerability in SAP 3D Visual Enterprise Viewer version 9 caused by improper input validation when processing IFF files. An attacker can craft a malicious IFF file that crashes the application when opened, causing temporary denial of service. Users who open IFF files from untrusted sources are affected.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

SAP 3D Visual Enterprise Viewer

Versions: Version 9

Operating Systems: Windows, Linux

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: Only affects version 9. Requires user to open a malicious IFF file.

📦 What is this software?

3d Visual Enterprise Viewer by Sap

View all CVEs affecting 3d Visual Enterprise Viewer →

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Remote code execution leading to complete system compromise if memory corruption can be weaponized beyond denial of service.

🟠

Likely Case

Application crash and denial of service requiring manual restart, potentially disrupting business workflows.

🟢

If Mitigated

Limited to temporary application unavailability if proper file validation controls are implemented.

🌐 Internet-Facing: MEDIUM - Requires user interaction to open malicious file, but could be delivered via email or web.

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Similar risk internally if users open untrusted files, though attack surface may be smaller.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No

Weaponized: UNKNOWN

Unauthenticated Exploit: ✅ No

Complexity: MEDIUM

Exploitation requires user interaction to open malicious file. No public proof-of-concept available.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: Apply SAP Note 3002617

Vendor Advisory: https://launchpad.support.sap.com/#/notes/3002617

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Download patch from SAP Note 3002617. 2. Apply to affected SAP 3D Visual Enterprise Viewer installations. 3. Restart application.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Restrict IFF file handling

all

Configure application to not open IFF files or block IFF file extensions at perimeter.

User awareness training

all

Train users not to open IFF files from untrusted sources.

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Implement application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized IFF file execution.
Use network segmentation to isolate systems running vulnerable viewer.

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check SAP 3D Visual Enterprise Viewer version - if version 9, it is vulnerable.

Check Version:

Check application about dialog or installation details for version information.

Verify Fix Applied:

Verify SAP Note 3002617 is applied and application version is updated.

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Application crash logs related to IFF file processing
Unexpected application termination events

Network Indicators:

Inbound IFF file transfers to user workstations

SIEM Query:

EventID: 1000 Application Error for SAP 3D Visual Enterprise Viewer

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2021-21449

CVSS v3 Score: 8.8 (HIGH)

CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CWE: CWE-119

Published: January 12, 2021

Last Updated: November 21, 2024

🔗 References

https://launchpad.support.sap.com/#/notes/3002617 Permissions Required
https://wiki.scn.sap.com/wiki/pages/viewpage.action?pageId=564760476 Vendor Advisory
https://launchpad.support.sap.com/#/notes/3002617 Permissions Required
https://wiki.scn.sap.com/wiki/pages/viewpage.action?pageId=564760476 Vendor Advisory

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🔗 Related Vulnerabilities

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