CVE-2011-4356
Fix: ask/celery#544CVE-2011-4356 is a CWE-264 vulnerability in celery. O3 Security confirms whether CVE-2011-4356 is actually reachable in your code before you act, and blocks exploitation at runtime until you patch.
Celery local privilege escalation vulnerability
Real-World Exposure
celery🐍celery🐍celeryReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects PyPI packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Celery 2.1 and 2.2 before 2.2.8, 2.3 before 2.3.4, and 2.4 before 2.4.4 changes the effective id but not the real id during processing of the --uid and --gid arguments to celerybeat, celeryd_detach, celeryd-multi, and celeryev, which allows local users to gain privileges via vectors involving crafted code that is executed by the worker process.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐍PyPI | celery | ≥ 2.1.0&&< 2.2.8 | 2.2.8 |
| 🐍PyPI | celery | ≥ 2.3.0&&< 2.3.4 | 2.3.4 |
| 🐍PyPI | celery | ≥ 2.4.0&&< 2.4.4 | 2.4.4 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for celery. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update celery to 2.2.8 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2011-4356 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether CVE-2011-4356 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to CVE-2011-4356. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2011-4356 in your dependencies?
O3 detects CVE-2011-4356 across PyPI dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.