# CVE-2021-31424: Memory corruption in Desktop

> Local attackers can escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code in the hypervisor context via a heap buffer overflow in Parallels Desktop.

- **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 29 Apr 2021
- **Updated:** 3 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-338g-7g45-fv76

## What is CVE-2021-31424?

CVE-2021-31424 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Parallels Parallels Desktop, published on 29 Apr 2021. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on affected installations of Parallels Desktop 15.1.5-47309. An attacker must first obtain the ability to execute low-privileged code on the target guest system in order to exploit this vulnerability. The specific flaw exists within the Open Tools Gate component. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of the length of user-supplied data prior to copying it to a fixed-length heap-based buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code in the context of the hypervisor. Was ZDI-CAN-12848.

Weakness: CWE-122 (Heap-based Buffer Overflow)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-31424?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Parallels Parallels Desktop.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-31424?

No fix has been published for CVE-2021-31424 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2021-31424 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-31424 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Parallels Parallels Desktop

- [CVE-2025-31359](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-31359/): Path traversal in Parallels Desktop for Mac (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2021-34864](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-34864/): Privilege escalation in Desktop (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2021-31420](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-31420/): Memory corruption in Desktop (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2021-31425](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-31425/): Integer overflow in Desktop (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2021-31426](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-31426/): Integer overflow in Desktop (high 8.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-31424 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-31424 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Parallels Parallels Desktop, published on 29 Apr 2021. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-31424 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Parallels Parallels Desktop. 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-2021-31424/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-31424/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-31424
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-31424
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-31424

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-31424/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.