CVE-2021-40525
Sieve file storage vulnerable to path traversal attacks
Apache James ManagedSieve implementation alongside with the file storage for sieve scripts is vulnerable to path traversal, allowing reading and writing any file. This vulnerability had been patched in Apache James 3.6.1 and higher. We recommend the upgrade. Distributed and Cassandra based products are also not impacted.
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
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
NVD Score used
Apache James ManagedSieve implementation alongside with the file storage for sieve scripts is vulnerable to path traversal, allowing reading and writing any file. This vulnerability had been patched in Apache James 3.6.1 and higher. We recommend the upgrade. Distributed and Cassandra based products are also not impacted.
- Record
CVE-2021-40525- CVSS 3.1
- 9.1 Critical
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N - CVSS 2.0
- 6.4 Medium
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-22
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
CVE List No score
Sieve file storage vulnerable to path traversal attacks
Apache James ManagedSieve implementation alongside with the file storage for sieve scripts is vulnerable to path traversal, allowing reading and writing any file. This vulnerability had been patched in Apache James 3.6.1 and higher. We recommend the upgrade. Distributed and Cassandra based products are also not impacted.
- Record
CVE-2021-40525- Weakness
- CWE-22
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2022-0552 No score
Apache James ManagedSieve implementation alongside with the file storage for sieve scripts is vulnerable to path traversal, allowing reading and writing any file. This vulnerability had been patched in Apache James 3.6.1 and higher. We recommend the upgrade. Distributed and Cassandra based products are also not impacted.
- Record
EUVD-2022-0552- Updated
- 2026-11-03
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-c38m-7h53-g9v4
Path traversal in Apache James
Apache James ManagedSieve implementation alongside with the file storage for sieve scripts is vulnerable to path traversal, allowing reading and writing any file. This vulnerability had been patched in Apache James 3.6.1 and higher. We recommend the upgrade. Distributed and Cassandra based products are also not impacted.
- Record
GHSA-c38m-7h53-g9v4- CVSS 3.1
- 9.1 Critical
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-22
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
Apache James ManagedSieve implementation alongside with the file storage for sieve scripts is vulnerable to path traversal, allowing reading and writing any file. This vulnerability had been patched in Apache James 3.6.1 and higher. We recommend the upgrade. Distributed and Cassandra based products are also not impacted.
- Record
CVE-2021-40525- CVSS 3.1
- 9.1 Critical
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N - Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVGHSA-c38m-7h53-g9v4
Path traversal in Apache James
Apache James ManagedSieve implementation alongside with the file storage for sieve scripts is vulnerable to path traversal, allowing reading and writing any file. This vulnerability had been patched in Apache James 3.6.1 and higher. We recommend the upgrade. Distributed and Cassandra based products are also not impacted.
- Record
GHSA-c38m-7h53-g9v4- CVSS 3.1
- 9.1 Critical
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-22
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Affected packages
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
org.apache.james:james-serverMaven |
before 3.6.1 | 3.6.1 |
org.apache.james:james-serverMaven |
before 3.6.1, plus listed versions 3.0-M13.0-M23.0-beta23.0-beta33.0-beta4 Show 10 moreShow less3.0.03.0.0-RC13.0.0-beta53.0.13.1.03.2.03.3.03.4.03.5.03.6.0 |
3.6.1 |
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| aliases | EUVD | |
| first indexed | CVE List, GitHub Advisories, NVD, OSV |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2021-40525 is a critical vulnerability (CVSS 9.1) in Apache James, published January 4, 2022. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 3.83%, the 90th percentile. Fixed in org.apache.james:james-server 3.6.1.