CVE-2021-3493

CRITICALNVD 8.89.0
EchelonGraph scoreHIGH confidence

“▲” beside the score: it is higher than NVD's CVSS score.

Score elevated to 9.0 because this CVE is listed on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2022-10-20), indicating real-world exploitation has been confirmed by US federal agencies. NVD baseline CVSS 8.8 retained for reference. The 9.0 is the floor for confirmed exploitation, not an impact rating: this CVE's impact severity (EG Severity) is CVSS 8.8 HIGH under NVD CVSS v3. Confidence: HIGH.

Triggered by: CISA KEV (actively exploited)
Sources: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, EPSS, GitHub Security Advisory, NVD CVSS v3
Exploited in the wild

Also known asEUVD-2021-26815 (ENISA EUVD) · GHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 (GitHub Security Advisories)Source: ENISA EUVD

9.0EG
EchelonGraph verdictPatch nowTreat as an emergency — this is being exploited.
  • Actively exploited in the wild (CISA-KEV) — the reason this is sooner than the SSVC decision on this page at low or medium mission impact
CISA-KEV: ExploitedEPSS PROB: 49%CVSS: 8.8Exploit: Metasploit · other public PoCExposed services: Not assessed

A fix is available — apply it.

The overlayfs implementation in the linux kernel did not properly validate with respect to user namespaces the setting of file capabilities on files in an underlying file system. Due to the combination of unprivileged user namespaces along with a patch carried in the Ubuntu kernel to allow unprivileged overlay mounts, an attacker could use this to gain elevated privileges.

CVSS v3
8.8
EG Score
9.0CRITICALhigh confidence
EG Risk
80
EG Risk 80/100

EG Risk is EchelonGraph's 0–100 priority score. It fuses impact severity (EG Severity, the CVSS base score, never the KEV-floored or EPSS-lifted EG Score) with real-world exploitation and automatability, under weights EchelonGraph set by hand, so you can rank equal-severity CVEs and fix the most dangerous first. Higher = act sooner.

How it’s computed (value × EchelonGraph’s weight)
Severity88% × 45%
Impact severity (EG Severity): CVSS 8.8 of 10. Never the KEV-floored or EPSS-lifted EG Score.
Exploitation100% × 40%
Fixed at 100% for a CISA KEV listing: EchelonGraph's rule.
Automatability0% × 15%
CISA's SSVC Automatable value: no (Vulnrichment).
SSVC (CISA's decision table, applied by EchelonGraph): Track at low, Attend at medium and Act at high mission impact.
Exploitation active (CISA Vulnrichment) · Automatable no (CISA Vulnrichment) · Technical impact total (CISA Vulnrichment). All three are CISA's SSVC values (Vulnrichment). EchelonGraph applied CISA's decision table to them; CISA publishes SSVC inputs and the table, not a decision for each CVE.
Action: A fix is available. Apply it within your standard update timelines at low, sooner than that at medium and as soon as possible at high mission impact.
EPSS PROB
49%
EPSS %ILE
98th
KEV
⚠ Exploited

What the EG score is made of (scorer v4.0: the three questions the 0–10 score mixes, published apart · methodology)

The EG score (9.0): severity, escalated by confirmed exploitation. This CVE's 9.0 is the CISA KEV floor for confirmed exploitation, not an impact rating: its impact severity (EG Severity) is CVSS 8.8 HIGH.

EG Severity
8.8 HIGHCVSS-B, impact only: no KEV listing, EPSS or EG-KEV tier raises it.NVD CVSS v3 · CVSS v3.0 or v3.1
EG Likelihood
49% within 30 daysSource: FIRST EPSS (model v2026.06.15, score date 2026-11-11). FIRST's exploitation probability, not an EchelonGraph model.
Confirmed exploitation
CISA KEV and EG-KEV Tier 1 (exploited in the wild)Reported apart from the likelihood: an observed fact, not a probability.
EG Priority
SSVC Attend at medium mission impactTrack at low, Attend at medium and Act at high mission impact.CISA BOD 26-04: 3 days & forensic triage if the affected system is publicly exposed; 14 days if it is not.Each input and its source, and whom BOD 26-04 binds: the SSVC and BOD 26-04 blocks below.

SSVC (CISA's decision table, applied by EchelonGraph)Track at low, Attend at medium and Act at high mission impact.

A fix is available. Apply it within your standard update timelines at low, sooner than that at medium and as soon as possible at high mission impact.

Exploitation active (CISA Vulnrichment) · Automatable no (CISA Vulnrichment) · Technical impact total (CISA Vulnrichment). All three are CISA's SSVC values (Vulnrichment). EchelonGraph applied CISA's decision table to them; CISA publishes SSVC inputs and the table, not a decision for each CVE. Mission impact is CISA's Mission & Well-being decision point, and only you can judge it. CISA's table makes it high when Mission Prevalence is Essential — the vulnerable component "directly provides capabilities that constitute at least one MEF for at least one entity" (MEF: mission essential function) — or when Public Well-Being Impact is Irreversible: "multiple fatalities are likely", the cyber-physical system "is likely lost or destroyed", "extreme or serious externalities" are imposed on other parties, or social systems such as elections or the financial grid "are destabilized and potentially collapse". CISA's decision table

BOD 26-04 (CISA's remediation timeline, Table 1)3 days & forensic triage if the affected system is publicly exposed; 14 days if it is not.

The score's inputs: In CISA KEV yes (CISA's KEV catalog) · Automatable no (CISA Vulnrichment) · Technical impact total (CISA Vulnrichment). Whether your system is publicly exposed is yours to answer. BOD 26-04 binds US Federal Civilian Executive Branch agencies; for anyone else it is CISA's published timeline, a reference rather than an obligation. The directive · how EchelonGraph applies it

CISA required action“Apply updates per vendor instructions.”

Quoted verbatim from CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. CISA directs it at US federal civilian executive branch agencies under Binding Operational Directive (BOD) 26-04, which replaced BOD 22-01 on 10 June 2026; it is not EchelonGraph's advice. CISA's notes: https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=7c03e2cda4a584cadc398e8f6641ca9988a39d52 · https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-3493

Published

April 17, 2021

Last Modified

October 28, 2025

Advisory Details (6)

Auto-updated Nov 9, 2026
⚠️ Actively exploited (CISA KEV, CISA Vulnrichment). Patch available. Sources: ubuntu.
Web page

vfs: move cap_convert_nscap() call into vfs_setxattr() - kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git - Linux kernel source tree

https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=7c03e2cda4a584cadc398e8f6641ca9988a39d52
Web page

oss-security - [CVE-2021-3493] Ubuntu Linux kernel overlayfs fs caps privilege escalation

https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2021/04/16/1
UbuntuMentions a patch (unverified)

USN-4917-1: Linux kernel vulnerabilities | Ubuntu security notices | Ubuntu

https://ubuntu.com/security/notices/USN-4917-1

Patch Availability(4)

Vendor / EcosystemFix (by version range) / PatchReleasedSource
ubuntulinux-image-oem-20.04 (5.6.0.1054.50) @ focal2026-11-12ubuntu
ubuntulinux-image-virtual-lts-xenial (4.4.0.209.215) @ xenial2026-11-12ubuntu
ubuntulinux-image-virtual-hwe-20.04-edge (5.8.0.50.55) @ groovy2026-11-12ubuntu
ubuntulowlatency-4.4 (4.4.0-168) @ trusty2026-11-12ubuntu

Patches are aggregated from vendor advisories (Red Hat, Microsoft, Cisco, GitHub) and package ecosystems (OSV, GHSA). Multiple rows for the same upstream release have been deduplicated.

Affected Packages

(4 across 4 ecosystems)
Debian:11(1)
PackageVulnerable rangeFix by version rangeDependents
linux—
  • every version up to 5.10.38-1: fixed in 5.10.38-1
—
Debian:12(1)
PackageVulnerable rangeFix by version rangeDependents
linux—
  • every version up to 5.10.38-1: fixed in 5.10.38-1
—
Debian:13(1)
PackageVulnerable rangeFix by version rangeDependents
linux—
  • every version up to 5.10.38-1: fixed in 5.10.38-1
—
Debian:14(1)
PackageVulnerable rangeFix by version rangeDependents
linux—
  • every version up to 5.10.38-1: fixed in 5.10.38-1
—

Weakness Classification(3)

MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration — the root-cause categories this CVE belongs to.

All Vendor Advisories

(4)

Every vendor that published an advisory referencing this CVE — pulled from our cve_vendor_advisories aggregation. Click any row for the vendor's original advisory page.

Data Freshness Timeline

(refreshed 13× in last 7d / 71× in last 30d)

Each row is a time one of our pipelines fetched, updated or re-scored this CVE. For example, "NVD update" means NVD published or revised its analysis for this CVE; "MITRE cvelistV5" means we ingested or refreshed its CVE.org record (CNA or CISA ADP). An arrow marks a change the record states ("CVSS v3 → 9.1"); EPSS and GHSA rows show the values recorded at that time, not what changed (EPSS values are rounded; hover one for the exact figures). "EchelonGraph re-scored" is our own recompute of this CVE's score, not an update from a source, and is not counted in the refreshes above. Most recent first.

Showing the most recent 100 of 1,763 rows on record for this CVE.

A repeat, a row identical to one the same pipeline wrote less than 10 seconds earlier, is not a separate refresh and is not counted. None are among the latest 100 rows. The 1,663 oldest rows on record are not shown and were not checked, so the counts can still include repeats.

  1. 2026-11-12 16:29 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  2. 2026-11-12 14:10 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  3. 2026-11-12 14:10 UTCVendor advisory
  4. 2026-11-12 14:10 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  5. 2026-11-11 16:31 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  6. 2026-11-11 16:02 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  7. 2026-11-10 17:55 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  8. 2026-11-10 17:55 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  9. 2026-11-10 16:35 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  10. 2026-11-09 19:48 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  11. 2026-11-09 19:48 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  12. 2026-11-08 21:41 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  13. 2026-11-08 21:41 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  14. 2026-11-07 23:34 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  15. 2026-11-07 23:34 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  16. 2026-11-07 16:34 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  17. 2026-11-07 01:26 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  18. 2026-11-07 01:26 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  19. 2026-11-06 16:30 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  20. 2026-11-06 03:19 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  21. 2026-11-06 03:19 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  22. 2026-11-05 16:31 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  23. 2026-11-05 05:12 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  24. 2026-11-05 05:12 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  25. 2026-11-04 16:30 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
Show 75 more
  1. 2026-11-04 07:04 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  2. 2026-11-04 07:04 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  3. 2026-11-03 18:55 UTCOSV refresh
  4. 2026-11-03 16:38 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  5. 2026-11-03 08:56 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  6. 2026-11-03 08:56 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  7. 2026-11-02 10:47 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  8. 2026-11-02 10:47 UTCVendor advisory
  9. 2026-11-02 10:47 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  10. 2026-11-01 12:39 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  11. 2026-11-01 12:39 UTCVendor advisory
  12. 2026-11-01 12:39 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  13. 2026-10-31 16:29 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  14. 2026-10-31 14:33 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  15. 2026-10-31 14:33 UTCVendor advisory
  16. 2026-10-31 14:32 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  17. 2026-10-30 16:30 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  18. 2026-10-30 16:25 UTCVendor advisory
  19. 2026-10-30 16:25 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  20. 2026-10-29 19:33 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  21. 2026-10-29 19:33 UTCVendor advisory
  22. 2026-10-29 19:33 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  23. 2026-10-29 16:29 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  24. 2026-10-28 21:26 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  25. 2026-10-28 21:26 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  26. 2026-10-28 16:28 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  27. 2026-10-27 23:17 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  28. 2026-10-27 23:17 UTCVendor advisory
  29. 2026-10-27 23:16 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  30. 2026-10-27 16:28 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  31. 2026-10-27 01:08 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  32. 2026-10-27 01:08 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  33. 2026-10-26 02:57 UTCVendor advisory
  34. 2026-10-26 02:57 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  35. 2026-10-25 18:26 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  36. 2026-10-25 16:28 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  37. 2026-10-25 04:49 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  38. 2026-10-25 04:49 UTCVendor advisory
  39. 2026-10-25 04:49 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  40. 2026-10-24 16:29 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  41. 2026-10-24 06:42 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  42. 2026-10-24 06:41 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  43. 2026-10-23 16:28 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  44. 2026-10-23 08:32 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  45. 2026-10-23 08:32 UTCVendor advisory
  46. 2026-10-23 08:32 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  47. 2026-10-22 16:29 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  48. 2026-10-22 10:23 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  49. 2026-10-22 10:23 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  50. 2026-10-21 16:28 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  51. 2026-10-21 12:13 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  52. 2026-10-21 12:12 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  53. 2026-10-20 16:28 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  54. 2026-10-20 14:04 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  55. 2026-10-20 14:04 UTCVendor advisory
  56. 2026-10-20 14:04 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  57. 2026-10-19 16:28 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  58. 2026-10-19 15:55 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  59. 2026-10-18 17:46 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  60. 2026-10-18 17:45 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  61. 2026-10-18 16:28 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  62. 2026-10-18 08:59 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  63. 2026-10-17 19:38 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  64. 2026-10-17 19:38 UTCVendor advisory
  65. 2026-10-17 19:38 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  66. 2026-10-16 21:30 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  67. 2026-10-16 21:30 UTCVendor advisory
  68. 2026-10-16 21:30 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  69. 2026-10-16 16:34 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  70. 2026-10-15 23:23 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  71. 2026-10-15 23:23 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8
  72. 2026-10-15 16:28 UTCEPSS rescoreEPSS 49% · 98th percentile
  73. 2026-10-15 01:16 UTCEchelonGraph re-scored
  74. 2026-10-15 01:16 UTCVendor advisory
  75. 2026-10-15 01:16 UTCGHSA enrichmentGHSA-2fj2-4h38-3c72 · GitHub severity HIGH · GitHub CVSS 7.8

Publicly available exploits

(7 references)

Public exploit code is referenced for this CVE (1 Metasploit module, 6 GitHub PoCs). Defenders should treat patch urgency accordingly.

  • Metasploitexploit/linux/local/cve_2021_3493_overlayfs✓ verified
    Published Dec 2, 2021

    2021 Ubuntu Overlayfs LPE

    Open source ↗
  • GitHub PoCAyham-Megdadi/Zero-Day-Legacy
    Published Jul 5, 2026

    A vulnerable Boot-to-Root CTF lab machine simulating a hospital environment. Features a realistic 17-step attack chain including SQL Injection, XSS, Session Hijacking, SSH access, password cracking, privilege escalation via CVE-2021-3493, and full root compromise. Developed as a graduation project at Ajloun National University (ANU), awarded 97%.

    Open source ↗
  • GitHub PoCpuckiestyle/CVE-2021-3493
    Published Oct 2, 2021
    Open source ↗
  • GitHub PoCcerodah/overlayFS-CVE-2021-3493
    Published Sep 12, 2021

    2021 kernel vulnerability in Ubuntu.

    Open source ↗
  • GitHub PoCinspiringz/CVE-2021-3493
    Published Jul 7, 2021

    CVE-2021-3493 Ubuntu OverlayFS Local Privesc (Interactive Bash Shell & Execute Command Entered)

    Open source ↗
  • GitHub PoConeoy/CVE-2021-3493
    Published Apr 22, 2021
    Open source ↗
  • GitHub PoCbriskets/CVE-2021-3493
    Published Apr 19, 2021

    Ubuntu OverlayFS Local Privesc

    Open source ↗

Frequently asked(6)

What is CVE-2021-3493?
CVE-2021-3493 is a critical-severity vulnerability; its CVE record was published on April 17, 2021. The overlayfs implementation in the linux kernel did not properly validate with respect to user namespaces the setting of file capabilities on files in an underlying file system. Due to the combination of unprivileged user namespaces along with a patch carried in the Ubuntu kernel to allow…
When was CVE-2021-3493 made public?
CVE-2021-3493 was made public on April 15, 2021: that is the date its CVE record's CNA, Canonical Ltd., gives for when the vulnerability was made public. The CVE record itself was published on April 17, 2021. EchelonGraph's copy of the record carries a last-modified date of October 28, 2025; the record at its source may have been updated since.
Is CVE-2021-3493 actively exploited?
Yes. CISA added CVE-2021-3493 to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on October 20, 2022, affecting Linux Kernel. KEV listing indicates confirmed exploitation in the wild; this CVE warrants immediate attention. A fix is available. Apply it.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2021-3493?
CVE-2021-3493 has a CVSS v3 base score of 8.8 (NVD). EchelonGraph synthesises NVD + CISA KEV + FIRST EPSS + GHSA into a combined EG score of 9.0 (CRITICAL).
Which products are affected by CVE-2021-3493?
CVE-2021-3493 affects Linux Kernel. The affected packages EchelonGraph has on record, with version ranges, are listed in the Affected Packages section of this page.
How do I remediate CVE-2021-3493?
A fix for CVE-2021-3493 is available: update to the fixed version the vendor names in its advisory.

Dependency Blast Radius

See which npm, PyPI, Go, and Maven packages are affected by CVE-2021-3493

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