CVE intelligence and bounded remediation

CVE-2021-32785 — Openidc Mod Auth Openidc security vulnerability

High CVSS 7.5

mod_auth_openidc is an authentication/authorization module for the Apache 2.x HTTP server that functions as an OpenID Connect Relying Party, authenticating users against an OpenID Connect Provider. When mod_auth_openidc versions prior to 2.4.9 are configured to use an unencrypted Redis cache (`OIDCCacheEncrypt off`, `OIDCSessionType server-cache`, `OIDCCacheType redis`), `mod_auth_openidc` wrongly performed argument interpolation before passing Redis requests to `hiredis`, which would perform it again and lead to an uncontrolled format string bug. Initial assessment shows that this bug does not appear to allow gaining arbitrary code execution, but can reliably provoke a denial of service by repeatedly crashing the Apache workers. This bug has been corrected in version 2.4.9 by performing argument interpolation only once, using the `hiredis` API. As a workaround, this vulnerability can be mitigated by setting `OIDCCacheEncrypt` to `on`, as cache keys are cryptographically hashed before use when this option is enabled.

Severity
High
CVSS
7.5 (3.1)
Published
2021-07-22
CISA KEV
Not currently listed
Ecosystem
software/application
Weaknesses
CWE-134

Affected products

  • openidc / mod_auth_openidc
  • netapp / cloud_backup
  • debian / debian_linux / 10.0

Matched remediation archetype

Command, code, expression, and template injection

This catalog composition supplies bounded fallback guidance. Explicitly reviewed curated workflows load with the complete record below.

Check exposure

  • Trace untrusted values to process execution, interpreters, evaluators, template engines, dynamic imports, and administrative scripting features.
  • Determine whether the affected path is reachable across each trust boundary and which service account or host privilege it inherits.
  • Review configuration for optional execution features, unsafe compatibility modes, and shell invocation.

Remediate safely

  • Replace string-built commands or evaluated code with fixed operations and structured argument APIs that do not invoke a shell.
  • Use strict allowlists for operation identifiers and reject unexpected input before it reaches any interpreter.
  • Update the affected component and add inert regression tests covering metacharacters, encoding variants, and alternate request paths.

Authoritative sources

Complete CVE record and remediation plan

The detailed catalog view below loads this exact record, its source evidence, and the full seven-phase agentic change plan.