Summary
Apache kylin checks the legitimacy of the project before executing some commands with the project name passed in by the user. There is a mismatch between what is being checked and what is being used as the shell command argument in DiagnosisService. This may cause an illegal project name to pass the check and perform the following steps, resulting in a command injection vulnerability. This issue affects Apache Kylin 4.0.0.
Impact
Untrusted input is inserted into a command that is later executed by the application, allowing the attacker to alter the intent of that command. Typical impact: arbitrary command execution in the application's environment.
Affected versions
Security releases
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.
Remediation advice
Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2021-45456? CVE-2021-45456 is a medium-severity command injection vulnerability in org.apache.kylin:kylin (maven), affecting versions < 4.0.1. It is fixed in 4.0.1. Untrusted input is inserted into a command that is later executed by the application, allowing the attacker to alter the intent of that command.
- Which versions of org.apache.kylin:kylin are affected by CVE-2021-45456? org.apache.kylin:kylin (maven) versions < 4.0.1 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2021-45456? Yes. CVE-2021-45456 is fixed in 4.0.1. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2021-45456 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2021-45456 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
- What actually determines whether CVE-2021-45456 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.
- How do I fix CVE-2021-45456? Upgrade
org.apache.kylin:kylinto 4.0.1 or later.