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PatchSiren cyber security CVE debrief

CVE-2021-22204 Perl CVE debrief

CVE-2021-22204 is a remote code execution vulnerability affecting ExifTool. CISA added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2021-11-17, which means defenders should treat it as actively exploited and prioritize remediation. The supplied corpus does not include affected versions or root-cause details, so exposure should be confirmed through vendor guidance and software inventory.

Vendor
Perl
Product
Exiftool
CVSS
MEDIUM 6.8
CISA KEV
Listed
Original CVE published
2021-11-17
Original CVE updated
2021-11-17
Advisory published
2021-11-17
Advisory updated
2021-11-17

Who should care

Security teams, system owners, and administrators responsible for any deployment that includes ExifTool, including servers, workstations, build systems, and file-processing pipelines.

Technical summary

The available sources identify CVE-2021-22204 as an ExifTool remote code execution issue and list it in CISA's KEV catalog. CISA's metadata records the vulnerability as known exploited, with updates required per vendor instructions and a remediation due date of 2021-12-01. No affected-version range, exploit mechanism, or patch version is provided in the supplied corpus.

Defensive priority

Urgent

Recommended defensive actions

  • Inventory all systems, packages, and applications that include or invoke ExifTool.
  • Apply the vendor-recommended update or mitigation as soon as possible.
  • Prioritize remediation on systems that process externally supplied files or run ExifTool in automated workflows.
  • Remove, disable, or isolate unnecessary ExifTool installations until they are patched.
  • Verify remediation and confirm no remaining exposed instances before the CISA KEV due date or immediately if still vulnerable.

Evidence notes

This debrief is based on the supplied CVE metadata, the CISA KEV source item, and the official CVE/NVD reference links. The corpus supports only the identifier, product name, RCE classification, KEV status, KEV dateAdded of 2021-11-17, and dueDate of 2021-12-01. It does not provide affected versions, exploit details, or vendor patch text.

Sources and references

Verified primary and authoritative sources

  • CVE-2021-22204 CVE Program record

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-22204

    CVE Program - Official CVE Program record with source-provided CVE metadata.

  • CVE-2021-22204 NVD vulnerability detail

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-22204

    NIST National Vulnerability Database - Official NIST NVD detail page and source-specific vulnerability assessment.

  • CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog

    Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency - Official CISA catalog of vulnerabilities known to be exploited in the wild.

Supplemental references

  • Source item URL

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/feeds/known_exploited_vulnerabilities.json

    cisa_kev

Methodology and review provenance

AI-assisted synthesis based on stored public vulnerability evidence. System validation, approval state, and publication status do not by themselves establish human review of this revision. PatchSiren helps prioritize defensive review and does not prove exposure or remediation on any system.