CVE-2021-1534
Cisco Email Security Appliance URL Filtering Bypass Vulnerability
A vulnerability in the antispam protection mechanisms of Cisco AsyncOS Software for Cisco Email Security Appliance (ESA) could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to bypass the URL reputation filters on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper processing of URLs. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by crafting a URL in a particular way. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass the URL reputation filters that are configured for an affected device, which could allow malicious URLs to pass through the device.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges needed
- None
- User interaction
- None
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
Cisco Email Security Appliance URL Filtering Bypass Vulnerability
A vulnerability in the antispam protection mechanisms of Cisco AsyncOS Software for Cisco Email Security Appliance (ESA) could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to bypass the URL reputation filters on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper processing of URLs. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by crafting a URL in a particular way. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass the URL reputation filters that are configured for an affected device, which could allow malicious URLs to pass through the device.
- Record
CVE-2021-1534- CVSS 3.1
- 5.8 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:L/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-20
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2021-7001
A vulnerability in the antispam protection mechanisms of Cisco AsyncOS Software for Cisco Email Security Appliance (ESA) could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to bypass the URL reputation filters on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper processing of URLs. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by crafting a URL in a particular way. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass the URL reputation filters that are configured for an affected device, which could allow malicious URLs to pass through the device.
- Record
EUVD-2021-7001- CVSS 3.1
- 5.8 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:L/A:N - Updated
- 2026-11-03
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-86vv-w52w-qq85 No score
A vulnerability in the antispam protection mechanisms of Cisco AsyncOS Software for Cisco Email...
A vulnerability in the antispam protection mechanisms of Cisco AsyncOS Software for Cisco Email Security Appliance (ESA) could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to bypass the URL reputation filters on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper processing of URLs. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by crafting a URL in a particular way. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass the URL reputation filters that are configured for an affected device, which could allow malicious URLs to pass through the device.
- Record
GHSA-86vv-w52w-qq85- Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
A vulnerability in the antispam protection mechanisms of Cisco AsyncOS Software for Cisco Email Security Appliance (ESA) could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to bypass the URL reputation filters on an affected device. This vulnerability is due to improper processing of URLs. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by crafting a URL in a particular way. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to bypass the URL reputation filters that are configured for an affected device, which could allow malicious URLs to pass through the device.
- Record
CVE-2021-1534- CVSS 3.1
- 5.8 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:L/A:N - CVSS 3.1
- 5.3 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N - CVSS 2.0
- 5.0 Medium
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:P/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-20
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| aliases, published | EUVD | |
| first indexed | CVE List, GitHub Advisories, NVD |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2021-1534 is a medium vulnerability (CVSS 5.8) in Cisco Asyncos, published October 6, 2021. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 1.07%, the 64th percentile. No source names a fixed version.