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Full vulnerability report · 2021
CVE-2021-3033High confidence

Prisma Cloud Compute: SAML Authentication Bypass Vulnerability in Console

Palo Alto Networks · Prisma Cloud Compute

9.1CriticalCVSS 3.1
Recommended action
Within 72 hours

Critical technical impact with a remotely reachable, unauthenticated path; no CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.

Patch available
R
Operational reassessment

Published severity in operational context

Open reassessment dashboard →
Published severityCriticalOperational priority:Critical, unchanged from published severity.unchanged

Evidence used

  • No CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.
  • The selected CVSS metric records a network-reachable, unauthenticated path with no user interaction.
  • EPSS is 1.21% for the current model date.

Compensating controls

  • Validate the affected product branch and deploy the verified fixed release.
  • Restrict the affected network interface to trusted sources where business-safe.
  • Monitor vendor guidance and exploitation sources for a material change.

Verification

  1. Confirm that the asset runs Palo Alto Networks Prisma Cloud Compute and falls inside the recorded affected range.
  2. Verify the installed build against the product-specific fixed version after deployment.
  3. Validate exposure, authentication requirements and compensating controls in the actual environment.
  4. Reopen this reassessment when CVSS, KEV, EPSS, exploit evidence or remediation changes.
Mitigation target: Within 3 daysRemediation target: Within 90 days

This automated reassessment organises public evidence. It does not know asset exposure, business impact or control effectiveness and does not replace CVSS or a human risk decision.

Optional official sources

National CERT insights
?CERT means Computer Emergency Response Team; CSIRT is the closely related term Computer Security Incident Response Team.

Choose official national sources for this report. Each advisory shows its original language. Your selection is remembered on this device and included in shared links.

Official European source

ENISA European Vulnerability Database

Official EUVD identifiers, advisory evidence and known-exploited context. Missing fields are not treated as evidence of low risk.

1 current
ENISA EUVD identifier

EUVD-2021-26385

No EUVD known-exploited evidence

ENISA has published the identifier mapping but no EUVD description has been stored yet.

EUVD state
Present in the current official mapping
Known exploitation
Not present in the current ENISA EUVD known-exploited dataset. This is not proof of no exploitation.
ENISA score
Not supplied in the stored EUVD record
Advisory evidence
No linked advisory details stored yet
Recommended actionWithin 72 hours

Critical technical impact with a remotely reachable, unauthenticated path; no CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.

Patch available
01

What, why and how

An improper verification of cryptographic signature vulnerability exists in the Palo Alto Networks Prisma Cloud Compute console. This vulnerability enables an attacker to bypass signature validation during SAML authentication by logging in to the Prisma Cloud Compute console as any authorized user. This issue impacts: All versions of Prisma Cloud Compute 19.11, Prisma Cloud Compute 20.04, and Prisma Cloud Compute 20.09; Prisma Cloud Compute 20.12 before update 1. Prisma Cloud Compute SaaS version is not impacted by this vulnerability.

What

An improper verification of cryptographic signature vulnerability exists in the Palo Alto Networks Prisma Cloud Compute console. This vulnerability enables an attacker to bypass signature validation during SAML authentication by logging in to the Prisma Cloud Compute console as any authorized user. This issue impacts: All versions of Prisma Cloud Compute 19.11, Prisma Cloud Compute 20.04, and Prisma Cloud Compute 20.09; Prisma Cloud Compute 20.12 before update 1. Prisma Cloud Compute SaaS version is not impacted by this vulnerability.

Why

The product does not verify, or incorrectly verifies, the cryptographic signature for data.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

What

An improper verification of cryptographic signature vulnerability exists in the Palo Alto Networks Prisma Cloud Compute console. This vulnerability enables an attacker to bypass signature validation during SAML authentication by logging in to the Prisma Cloud Compute console as any authorized user. This issue impacts: All versions of Prisma Cloud Compute 19.11, Prisma Cloud Compute 20.04, and Prisma Cloud Compute 20.09; Prisma Cloud Compute 20.12 before update 1. Prisma Cloud Compute SaaS version is not impacted by this vulnerability.

Why

The product does not verify, or incorrectly verifies, the cryptographic signature for data.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

02

Exploit reality and attack path

CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.

Observed exploitation
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
No confirmed evidence

No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.

Public PoC / exploit material
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
None recorded

No exploit-tagged reference or CISA SSVC proof-of-concept state is currently recorded. Research may still exist outside the structured feeds.

Likely attack path
a network path → Improper Verification of Cryptographic Signature → cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor
Attack surface
Network
Privileges required
None: unauthenticated exploitation is possible
User interaction
None
Attack complexity
Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
Security boundary
Unchanged: impact remains within the vulnerable component's security authority
Weakness
?CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness.
CWE-347 ↗

CWE-347: Improper Verification of Cryptographic Signature. The product does not verify, or incorrectly verifies, the cryptographic signature for data.

CVSS vector
?CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N

Common Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.

AVNetworkAttack vector: The vulnerable component can be reached over a network.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.PRNonePrivileges required: The attacker does not need an account or existing privileges.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.SUnchangedScope: The security impact remains within the vulnerable component's authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.IHighIntegrity impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.ANoneAvailability impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
No specific living-off-the-land technique is confirmed in the structured sources. Monitor normal administration tools for activity inconsistent with the affected service's baseline.
NetworkUnauthenticatedCWE-347
A

Official authority intelligence

Only matched European and national findings are included. Language selectors and unavailable sources are omitted.

Canadian Centre for Cyber Security · English · AV21-076Palo Alto Networks security advisory

On 10 February 2021 Palo Alto Networks published a Security Advisory to address a vulnerability in the following product: Exploitation of this vulnerability could allow a malicious actor to bypass signature validation during SAML authentication.

Official advisory ↗
Cyber Security Agency of Singapore · English · CSA-SB-20210217Security Bulletin 17 Feb 2021

The Cyber Security Agency of Singapore included this CVE in its official Security Bulletin 17 Feb 2021, published on 17 February 2021. Open the linked bulletin for the product, severity and reference information published in that issue.

Official advisory ↗
CERT-FR · French · CERTFR-2021-AVI-110Vulnérabilité dans Palo Alto Networks Prisma Cloud Compute

Une vulnérabilité a été découverte dans Palo Alto Networks Prisma Cloud Compute. Elle permet à un attaquant de provoquer un contournement de la politique de sécurité, une atteinte à l'intégrité des données et une atteinte à la confidentialité des données.

Official advisory ↗
JVN iPedia · Japanese · JVNDB-2021-003236Palo Alto Networks Prisma Cloud におけるデジタル署名の検証に関する脆弱性

Palo Alto Networks Prisma Cloud には、デジタル署名の検証に関する脆弱性が存在します。

Official advisory ↗
03

Patch and workaround

Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.

Status
?Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Patch available
Affected
Prisma Cloud Compute: 19.11 ≤ update 2, 20.04 ≤ update 2, 20.09 ≤ update 2, 20.12 < update 1
Fixed
This issue is fixed in Prisma Cloud Compute 20.12 update 1 and all later versions.
Action
Review the linked authoritative reference and apply the recorded fixed release appropriate to the affected product branch.
Workaround
No verified workaround is recorded. If business-safe, reduce exposure to the affected interface and allow only trusted sources until authoritative guidance is available.
04

Evidence and provenance

Published 10 Feb 2021 · Last source change 17 Sept 2024, 03:14 UTC · CWE-347 · Improper Verification of Cryptographic Signature

CVE recordCVE.org · 5.1
CVSS sourceCNA
EPSS source
?The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.
FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-14
European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2021-26385
Product sourceCNA
Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references
CWE sourceCNA
NVD statusNVD modified after enrichment

Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates ↗
  1. Remediation statusRemediation status changed from Awaiting fix to Mitigation available.
    Before
    Awaiting fix
    After
    Mitigation available
    Canadian Centre for Cyber Security ↗
Material fields only · duplicate refreshes suppressed · history retained for the configured operational retention period
CVE published
Remediation guidance recorded
ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2021-26385↗Canadian Centre for Cyber Security remediation guidance↗CVE authority or vendor reference↗Official CVE record (CNA and ADP data)↗NVD record↗
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
CVE
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
CVSS
Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
EPSS
Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
CWE
Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
CNA
CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
CISA ADP
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
NVD
National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
CERT / CSIRT
A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
PoC
Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
CSAF
Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
LoTL
Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.
Free version - for non-commercial use only.CVE-2021-3033 · cve.blacktree.nl