CVE-2021-3560
HIGHCISA KEVEPSS 97th pctlDescription
It was found that polkit could be tricked into bypassing the credential checks for D-Bus requests, elevating the privileges of the requestor to the root user. This flaw could be used by an unprivileged local attacker to, for example, create a new local administrator. The highest threat from this vulnerability is to data confidentiality and integrity as well as system availability.
How to fix
TridentStack Control can deploy fixes like this automatically across your Windows, macOS, and Linux fleet. See how it works
Remediation is compiled from vendor and distribution security advisories. Always confirm against the linked source for your exact version and platform.
CVSS v3 Vector
Exploitability
Impact
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Exploit Intelligence
Very high risk: more likely to be exploited than 97% of all known CVEs.
Red Hat Polkit Incorrect Authorization Vulnerability
Red Hat Polkit contains an incorrect authorization vulnerability through the bypassing of credential checks for D-Bus requests, allowing for privilege escalation.
Apply updates per vendor instructions.
Remediation due: 2023-06-02
References
Related Vulnerabilities
Other CWE-863 (Incorrect Authorization) vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all
| CVE | Severity | CVSS | EPSS | Exploited | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2023-22518 | Critical | 9.8 | 100% | KEV + Ransom | Fix |
| CVE-2023-38035 | Critical | 9.8 | 100% | KEV + Ransom | - |
| CVE-2022-46169 | Critical | 9.8 | 100% | KEV | Fix |
| CVE-2024-38856 | Critical | 9.8 | 99% | KEV | Fix |
| CVE-2025-29927 | Critical | 9.1 | 99% | - | Fix |
| CVE-2020-36289 | Medium | 5.3 | 99% | - | Fix |
Common questions
How do I fix CVE-2021-3560?
Published advisories record a fix for 4 affected products. The "How to fix" section on this page lists the fixed version and source advisory for each one, so apply the entry matching what you actually run.
Is CVE-2021-3560 being actively exploited?
Yes. CVE-2021-3560 is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which means exploitation has been observed in the wild. US federal agencies were required to remediate it by 2023-06-02. Treat it as a priority whatever its CVSS score says.
How severe is CVE-2021-3560?
CVE-2021-3560 has a CVSS v3 base score of 7.8, rated high. CVSS rates the technical impact if the vulnerability is exploited, not how likely that is, so weigh it alongside the exploit-prediction score when you decide what to patch first.
What does CVE-2021-3560 affect?
Published advisories record a fix for policykit-1 (Debian), libpolkit-agent-1-0 (Ubuntu), libpolkit-gobject-1-0 (Ubuntu), policykit-1 (Ubuntu). Only products with a sourced advisory are listed, so treat this as what we can cite rather than a complete inventory.
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This product uses NVD data but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS scores courtesy of FIRST.org (https://www.first.org/epss). Source: CISA KEV Catalog. Data as of 2025-11-06.