CVE-2021-21374 | Nimble fails to validate certificates due to insecure httpClient defaults

Exp

Nimble is a package manager for the Nim programming language. In Nim release versions before versions 1.2.10 and 1.4.4, "nimble refresh" fetches a list of Nimble packages over HTTPS without full verification of the SSL/TLS certificate due to the default setting of httpClient. An attacker able to perform MitM can deliver a modified package list containing malicious software packages. If the packages are installed and used the attack escalates to untrusted code execution.

Published: 2021-03-26 Last update: 2024-11-21 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2021-21374 is rated High Exploit Risk (66.1/100): CVSS High severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.31%). 1 public exploit reference(s) are indexed (Exploit-DB). Public exploits are available—assess exposure, apply mitigations, and prioritize patching.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2021-21374

EDB-ID Source Kind Published Link
— nvd_ref exploit_tag Exploit-DB ↗

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2021-21374

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2025-11-21 0.54% 0.31% -0.23%
2 2025-11-18 0.27% 0.54% +0.26%
3 2025-03-30 — 0.27% —

Full EPSS history (10 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2021-21374

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
8.1 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:H/A:L Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:C)
Breaking this can reach past the original component and bite other resources—bigger blast radius.
Confidentiality (C:L)
Some sensitive info could get out, but not a total data dump.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:L)
Might cause slowdowns, glitches, or partial disruption—not a full brick.
 2.2 5.3 [email protected]
8.1 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 2.2 5.9 [email protected]
6.8 2.0 MEDIUM
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:M)
Exploitation needs some favorable conditions, but not exceptional ones.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:P)
Partial integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:P)
Partial availability impact.
 8.6 6.4 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2021-21374

OS Trackers for CVE-2021-21374

vendor priority summary link
debian not yet assigned CVE-2021-21374 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (nim), 4 status rows across 4 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid): resolved 4. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2021-21374
ubuntu medium CVE-2021-21374 medium priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (nim), 14 status rows across 14 suites (bionic, focal, groovy, hirsute, impish, lunar, mantic, noble, oracular, plucky, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): ignored 7, needs-triage 6, DNE 1. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2021-21374

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2021-21374

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
nim-lang nim < 1.2.10 cpe:2.3:a:nim-lang:nim:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
nim-lang nim >= 1.4.0, < 1.4.4 cpe:2.3:a:nim-lang:nim:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2021-21374

cvelogic Threat Intelligence