CVE-2021-44515

Exp

Zoho ManageEngine Desktop Central is vulnerable to authentication bypass, leading to remote code execution on the server, as exploited in the wild in December 2021. For Enterprise builds 10.1.2127.17 and earlier, upgrade to 10.1.2127.18. For Enterprise builds 10.1.2128.0 through 10.1.2137.2, upgrade to 10.1.2137.3. For MSP builds 10.1.2127.17 and earlier, upgrade to 10.1.2127.18. For MSP builds 10.1.2128.0 through 10.1.2137.2, upgrade to 10.1.2137.3.

Published: 2021-12-12 Last update: 2025-10-31 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2021-44515 is rated Critical Active Threat (99.2/100): CVSS Critical severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 94.35%, 100th percentile). CISA KEV confirms active exploitation (added 2021-12-10) affecting Zoho / Desktop Central. Unauthenticated remote administrative access may be possible. The CISA remediation deadline has passed—treat as an emergency patch priority.

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

CISA KEV Record for CVE-2021-44515

Name: Zoho Desktop Central Authentication Bypass Vulnerability · CISA KEV detail

Exploit added: 2021-12-10

Action due: 2021-12-24

Required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2021-44515

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

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2021-44515

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 2026-05-28 94.37% 94.35% -0.02%
2 2026-03-27 94.33% 94.37% +0.03%
3 2026-03-06 — 94.33% —

Full EPSS history (22 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2021-44515

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
9.8 3.1 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/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: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: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.
 3.9 5.9 [email protected]
9.8 3.1 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/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: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: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.
 3.9 5.9 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
10.0 2.0 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:C)
Complete confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:C)
Complete integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:C)
Complete availability impact.
 10.0 10.0 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2021-44515

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2021-44515

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
zohocorp manageengine_desktop_central < 10.1.2127.18 cpe:2.3:a:zohocorp:manageengine_desktop_central:*:*:*:*:enterprise:*:*:*
zohocorp manageengine_desktop_central < 10.1.2127.18 cpe:2.3:a:zohocorp:manageengine_desktop_central:*:*:*:*:managed_service_providers:*:*:*
zohocorp manageengine_desktop_central >= 10.1.2128.0, < 10.1.2137.3 cpe:2.3:a:zohocorp:manageengine_desktop_central:*:*:*:*:enterprise:*:*:*
zohocorp manageengine_desktop_central >= 10.1.2128.0, < 10.1.2137.3 cpe:2.3:a:zohocorp:manageengine_desktop_central:*:*:*:*:managed_service_providers:*:*:*

References for CVE-2021-44515

cvelogic Threat Intelligence