CVE-2021-44228 CISA KEV critical CVSS 10.0

[KEV] Vulnerability in Apache Log4j2 (CVE-2021-44228)

Summary

Vulnerability in Apache Log4j2 (CVE-2021-44228). Successful exploitation can lead to full system takeover. Listed in CISA KEV — actively exploited.

Original description

The description as published by the source.

Apache Log4j2 2.0-beta9 through 2.15.0 (excluding security releases 2.12.2, 2.12.3, and 2.3.1) JNDI features used in configuration, log messages, and parameters do not protect against attacker controlled LDAP and other JNDI related endpoints. An attacker who can control log messages or log message parameters can execute arbitrary code loaded from LDAP servers when message lookup substitution is enabled. From log4j 2.15.0, this behavior has been disabled by default. From version 2.16.0 (along with 2.12.2, 2.12.3, and 2.3.1), this functionality has been completely removed. Note that this vulnerability is specific to log4j-core and does not affect log4net, log4cxx, or other Apache Logging Services projects.

Source: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities NVD GitHub Advisory CISA KEV

Auto-generated summary

Assembled by SecPulse from the source data (CVSS, CWE, affected versions) using templates — no AI involved. Check the original description and references below for exact details.

A vulnerability tracked as CVE-2021-44228 has been found in Apache Log4j2.
Successful exploitation can lead to full system takeover. CVSS score: 10.0/10.
Note: CISA has officially confirmed this is actively exploited in the wild. Treat it with elevated urgency.
What to do: apply the vendor's official patched release.
If unsure, ask your IT team or search "Apache Log4j2 CVE-2021-44228" on the vendor's site.

CVE-2021-44228 (Apache Log4j2) — CWE-20 / CVSS v3 10.0
Attack vector: remote (network-reachable) / unauthenticated / no user interaction
Listed in CISA KEV — actively exploited, treat as top priority.
Plan: 1) Audit SBOM/dependencies, 2) Stage→prod upgrade, 3) Add WAF/proxy monitoring on affected endpoints, 4) Hunt IOCs in logs.
Refs: see the GHSA / vendor advisory / patched release linked on this page.

❓ What is the problem

A vulnerability (CWE-20) exists in Apache Log4j2.

📍 Affected scope

Check the vendor advisory for the affected versions of Apache Log4j2.

🔥 Severity

Severity: Critical (CVSS 10.0/10). Successful exploitation can lead to full system takeover. Listed in CISA KEV — actively exploited in the wild, treat as top priority.

🔧 How to fix

Update to the patched release per vendor advisory.

🛡️ Workaround

Until the patch is applied: disable the affected feature, apply WAF rules, or restrict access via network ACLs.

🔍 Detection

Search webserver/proxy logs for unusual request patterns matching this CVE's known IOCs. Run grep -r 'Log4j2' . against your dependency files (package-lock.json, requirements.txt, go.sum) to find affected services.

Response actions

Concrete steps and command examples for SOC/SRE teams to execute in order

1
Identify exposure identify
```
grep -r 'Log4j2' . | grep -v node_modules
```
リポジトリと本番環境の依存ファイル (package-lock.json / requirements.txt / go.sum / Gemfile.lock 等) で Log4j2 を grep し、稼働しているサービス・バージョンを把握する。
2
Consider incident declaration escalate
```
Notify SOC / on-call
```
CISA KEV登録済 = 実環境で悪用が観測されている。侵入の兆候があればインシデント対応宣言、無くてもパッチ適用までWAF強化を最優先で。
3
Post-deployment verification verify
```
Confirm patched version is live in production
```
パッチ適用後、ステージングで PoC または同等の悪用パターンを再現して脆弱性が閉じたことを確認。本番ではアクセスログ・WAF でアラート再発が無いか継続監視。

Fix status by distribution

Fixed packages published by each distribution for this CVE

Debian DEBIAN-CVE-2021-44228 apache-log4j2 Fixed in: 2.15.0-1

Summary

Original description

Auto-generated summary

Response actions

Fix status by distribution

References