# CVE-2021-4311: Talend Open Studio for MDM XML xml external entity reference

> An attacker can exploit an XML external entity vulnerability in Talend Open Studio for MDM to read sensitive files or cause denial of service.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L`)
- **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:** 9 Jan 2023
- **Updated:** 9 Apr 2025
- **Also known as:** GHSA-93gm-2pxg-46p3

## What is CVE-2021-4311?

CVE-2021-4311 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Talend Open Studio for MDM, published on 9 Jan 2023. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

A vulnerability classified as problematic was found in Talend Open Studio for MDM. This vulnerability affects unknown code of the component XML Handler. The manipulation leads to xml external entity reference. The patch is identified as 31d442b9fb1d518128fd18f6e4d54e06c3d67793. It is recommended to apply a patch to fix this issue. VDB-217666 is the identifier assigned to this vulnerability.

Weakness: CWE-611 (Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-4311?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Talend Open Studio.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-4311?

No fix has been published for CVE-2021-4311 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2021-4311 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-4311 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-4311 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-4311 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Talend Open Studio for MDM, published on 9 Jan 2023. 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-2021-4311 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Talend Open Studio for MDM. 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-2021-4311/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-4311/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-4311
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-4311
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-4311

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-4311/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.