# CVE-2021-22235: Denial of service in Wireshark

> Attackers can cause a denial of service in Wireshark via crafted packets or capture files due to a crash in the DNP dissector.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 20 Jul 2021
- **Updated:** 3 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** AZL-7407, DEBIAN-CVE-2021-22235, GHSA-c9h4-m6h9-v7wx, MGASA-2021-0364, SUSE-SU-2021:3017-1, UBUNTU-CVE-2021-22235, openSUSE-SU-2021:1276-1, openSUSE-SU-2021:3017-1

## What is CVE-2021-22235?

CVE-2021-22235 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 20 Jul 2021. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Crash in DNP dissector in Wireshark 3.4.0 to 3.4.6 and 3.2.0 to 3.2.14 allows denial of service via packet injection or crafted capture file

Weakness: CWE-835 (Loop with Unreachable Exit Condition)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-22235?

It affects 2 products.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `wireshark` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Basesystem 15 SP2 | All versions | 3.4.7-3.59.1 |
| `wireshark` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Basesystem 15 SP3 | All versions | 3.4.7-3.59.1 |
| `wireshark` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Desktop Applications 15 SP2 | All versions | 3.4.7-3.59.1 |
| `wireshark` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Desktop Applications 15 SP3 | All versions | 3.4.7-3.59.1 |
| `wireshark` | openSUSE:Leap 15.2 | All versions | 3.4.7-lp152.2.18.1 |
| `wireshark` | openSUSE:Leap 15.3 | All versions | 3.4.7-3.59.1 |

Products: Debian Debian Linux, Wireshark Wireshark.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-22235?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2021-22235 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-22235 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Debian Debian Linux

- [CVE-2015-3306](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-3306/): ProFTPD Improper Access Control (critical 10.0, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-49113](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-49113/): RoundCube Webmail Deserialization of Untrusted Data (critical 9.9, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-24061](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-24061/): GNU InetUtils Argument Injection (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-39682](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-39682/): Linux Kernel Improper Check for Unusual or Exceptional Conditions (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-9680](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-9680/): Mozilla Firefox Use-After-Free (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-22235 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-22235 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 20 Jul 2021. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-22235 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Debian Debian Linux. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-22235/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-22235/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-22235
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-22235
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-22235

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-22235/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.