Threats / SAP / CVE-2021-38163
CVE-2021-38163
· EUVD no mirror located
· GCVE no mirror located
Verified 2026-06-22
SAP NetWeaver vulnerability
SAP NetWeaver contains an unrestricted file upload vulnerability (CWE-23) that has been exploited in the wild.
Verdict
Today item — known-exploited.
This path traversal vulnerability in file upload handling enables attackers to write arbitrary files to the system, potentially achieving code execution or system compromise on affected NetWeaver instances.
01
Is it exploitable?
— the evidence, ranked above the scoreExploit available
Public proof-of-concept exploit code is cataloged for this vulnerability.We link the existence of the exploit; we do not host or redistribute payloads.
Reported exploitation
3 independent public reports of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2022-06-09).
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.37149 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
Affected: SAP, NetWeaver. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-23 Relative Path Traversal — weakness family: Path traversal / file.CWE assignment from the public NVD record; the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
02
Who’s exploiting it?
— attribution turns risk into urgencyAttribution not established
No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.
03
Why it matters
— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board1
Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1
Attacker
I craft a malicious file upload request with path traversal sequences to bypass directory restrictions.
Business
Unauthorized file placement on production systems creates immediate risk of code execution and data breach.
2
Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2
Attacker
I upload executable content or configuration files to sensitive application directories.
Business
Attackers gain ability to execute arbitrary code within the NetWeaver application context, compromising system integrity.
3
Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3
Attacker
I leverage the uploaded files to establish persistence or escalate privileges within the SAP environment.
Business
Enterprise resource planning systems become fully compromised, enabling theft of financial data, customer records, and operational intelligence.
04
What to do
— defensible action- Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05