CVE-2021-21331

CVE-2021-21331 is a low-severity security vulnerability in com.datadoghq:datadog-api-client (maven), affecting versions >= 1.0.0-beta.6, < 1.0.0-beta.9. It is fixed in 1.0.0-beta.9.

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Summary

Local Information Disclosure Vulnerability

Finding

The Datadog API is executed on a unix-like system with multiple users. The API is used to download a file containing sensitive information. This sensitive information is exposed locally to other users. This vulnerability exists in the API Client for version 1 and 2. The method prepareDownloadFilecreates creates a temporary file with the permissions bits of -rw-r--r-- on unix-like systems. On unix-like systems, the system temporary directory is shared between users. As such, the contents of the file downloaded via the downloadFileFromResponse method will be visible to all other users on the local system.

Analysis of the finding determined that the affected code was unused, meaning that the exploitation likelihood is low. The unused code has been removed, effectively mitigating this issue.

This vulnerability was found due to this query that Jonathan Leitschuh contributed to the Semmle QL project.

Workarounds

The recommended workaround is to specify java.io.tmpdir when starting the JVM with the flag -Djava.io.tmpdir, specifying a path to a directory with drw------- permissions owned by dd-agent.

References

For more information

If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:

Impact

Local information disclosure of sensitive information downloaded via the API using the API Client.

CVE-2021-21331 has a CVSS score of 3.0 (Low). The vector is network-reachable, low privileges required, and user interaction required. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (1.0.0-beta.9); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Affected versions

com.datadoghq:datadog-api-client (>= 1.0.0-beta.6, < 1.0.0-beta.9)

Security releases

com.datadoghq:datadog-api-client → 1.0.0-beta.9 (maven)

Kodem intelligence

Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.

Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.

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Remediation advice

This issue has been patched in version 1.0.0-beta.9.

See also Remove unused downloadFile helpers.

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. What is CVE-2021-21331? CVE-2021-21331 is a low-severity security vulnerability in com.datadoghq:datadog-api-client (maven), affecting versions >= 1.0.0-beta.6, < 1.0.0-beta.9. It is fixed in 1.0.0-beta.9.
  2. How severe is CVE-2021-21331? CVE-2021-21331 has a CVSS score of 3.0 (Low). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
  3. Which versions of com.datadoghq:datadog-api-client are affected by CVE-2021-21331? com.datadoghq:datadog-api-client (maven) versions >= 1.0.0-beta.6, < 1.0.0-beta.9 is affected.
  4. Is there a fix for CVE-2021-21331? Yes. CVE-2021-21331 is fixed in 1.0.0-beta.9. Upgrade to this version or later.
  5. Is CVE-2021-21331 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2021-21331 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
  6. What actually determines whether CVE-2021-21331 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
  7. How do I fix CVE-2021-21331? Upgrade com.datadoghq:datadog-api-client to 1.0.0-beta.9 or later.

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