CVE-2021-4314

It is possible to manipulate the JWT token without the knowledge of the JWT secret and authenticate without valid JWT token as any user. This is happening only in the situation when zOSMF doesn’t have the APAR PH12143 applied. This issue affects: 1.16 versions to 1.19. What happens is that the services using the ZAAS client or the API ML API to query will be deceived into believing the information in the JWT token is valid when it isn’t. It’s possible to use this to persuade the southbound service that different user is authenticated.

Published: 2023-01-18 Last update: 2025-04-03 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2021-4314 is rated Low Risk (36.2/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.21%). Mandatory action: Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

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

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2021-4314

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 2026-01-20 0.32% 0.21% -0.11%
2 2026-01-19 0.08% 0.32% +0.24%
3 2025-11-21 0.08%

Full EPSS history (7 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2021-4314

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
5.3 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N 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:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
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:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:L)
Attackers could change some data, but it’s limited—not everything goes.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
3.9 1.4 [email protected]
5.3 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N 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:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
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:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:L)
Attackers could change some data, but it’s limited—not everything goes.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
3.9 1.4 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2021-4314

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2021-4314

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
linuxfoundation zowe_api_mediation_layer >= 1.16.0, < 1.19.0 cpe:2.3:a:linuxfoundation:zowe_api_mediation_layer:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2021-4314

cvelogic Threat Intelligence