---
id: "CVE-2021-3560"
kind: "vulnerability"
aliases: ["CVE-2021-3560"]
title: "It was found that polkit could be tricked into bypassing the credential checks for D-Bus requests, elevating the\u2026"
severity: "high"
cvss: 7.8
epss: null
exploited: true
status: "open"
category: "infrastructure"
products: [{"name": "Red Hat Polkit", "fixed": [], "affected": "", "ecosystem": "vendor"}, {"name": "polkit project polkit", "fixed": ["0.119"], "affected": "< 0.119", "ecosystem": "vendor"}, {"name": "debian linux", "fixed": [], "affected": "= 11.0", "ecosystem": "vendor"}, {"name": "canonical ubuntu linux", "fixed": [], "affected": "= 20.04", "ecosystem": "vendor"}, {"name": "redhat virtualization", "fixed": [], "affected": "= 4.0", "ecosystem": "vendor"}, {"name": "redhat virtualization host", "fixed": [], "affected": "= 4.0", "ecosystem": "vendor"}, {"name": "redhat openshift container platform", "fixed": [], "affected": "= 4.7", "ecosystem": "vendor"}]
ecosystems: ["vendor"]
tags: ["exploited", "infrastructure", "linux", "polkit", "self-hosted"]
not_affected_if: ["fully-patched-polkit", "no-local-users"]
published_at: "2022-02-16T19:15:08+00:00"
first_seen_at: "2026-10-23T19:11:52+00:00"
updated_at: "2026-10-23T22:29:04+00:00"
sources: [{"source": "kev", "url": "https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?search_api_fulltext=CVE-2021-3560", "first_seen_at": "2026-10-23T19:11:52+00:00"}, {"source": "nvd", "url": "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-3560", "first_seen_at": "2026-10-23T22:29:04+00:00"}]
---

# It was found that polkit could be tricked into bypassing the credential checks for D-Bus requests, elevating the…

Polkit, the Linux service that decides which local users may perform privileged actions, can be tricked into skipping its credential check on D-Bus requests. A local user with no special rights gets root.

_Summary, check and fix written by a model from the sources; labelled as such._

## Affected

- vendor:Red Hat Polkit affected ? fixed ?
- vendor:polkit project polkit affected < 0.119 fixed 0.119
- vendor:debian linux affected = 11.0 fixed ?
- vendor:canonical ubuntu linux affected = 20.04 fixed ?
- vendor:redhat virtualization affected = 4.0 fixed ?
- vendor:redhat virtualization host affected = 4.0 fixed ?
- vendor:redhat openshift container platform affected = 4.7 fixed ?

## Fix

Apply the polkit update from your OS vendor, as CISA directs; the sources do not name the fixed version.

## Timeline

- 2026-10-23T19:11:52+00:00 kev https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?search_api_fulltext=CVE-2021-3560
- 2026-10-23T22:29:04+00:00 nvd https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-3560

## From the sources

It was found that polkit could be tricked into bypassing the credential checks for D-Bus requests, elevating the privileges of the requestor to the root user. This flaw could be used by an unprivileged local attacker to, for example, create a new local administrator. The highest threat from this vulnerability is to data confidentiality and integrity as well as system availability.

---

_Free to read at a human pace. An API with keys and an MCP server are in preparation; early access: hello@infrastack.ai_