CVE-2021-31542 is a high-severity (CVSS 7.5) Path Traversal vulnerability in django. A fix is available for django — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Path Traversal in Django
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2021-31542 by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). Outside the shaded patch-first corner.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 385,738 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Counts from FIRST.org, log-scaled.
Real-World Exposure
django🐍django🐍djangoReal-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
In Django 2.2 before 2.2.21, 3.1 before 3.1.9, and 3.2 before 3.2.1, MultiPartParser, UploadedFile, and FieldFile allowed directory traversal via uploaded files with suitably crafted file names.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐍PyPI | django | ≥ 2.2&&< 2.2.21 | 2.2.21pip install --upgrade 'django==2.2.21' |
| 🐍PyPI | django | ≥ 3.0&&< 3.1.9 | 3.1.9pip install --upgrade 'django==3.1.9' |
| 🐍PyPI | django | ≥ 3.2&&< 3.2.1 | 3.2.1pip install --upgrade 'django==3.2.1' |
Affected Products
debian linuxdebiandjangodjangoprojectfedorafedoraprojectDetection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for django, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update django to 2.2.21 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2021-31542 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Resolve every user-supplied path to its canonical form and reject anything that escapes the intended directory, and run the component under an account that has no read or write access outside the directory it legitimately serves.
Fixing This On Your OS
If you run this on a Linux distribution, patch through your package manager against the distro's own security advisory below — it tracks the exact backported fix for your release, which can ship on a different timeline (and sometimes a different severity) than the upstream project.
Red Hat Update Infrastructure is in the maintenance phase and we will not be fixing Medium/Low impact security bugs. Reference: https://access.redhat.com/support/policy/updates/rhui
Mitigation for this issue is either not available or the currently available options do not meet the Red Hat Product Security criteria comprising ease of use and deployment, applicability to widespread installation base or stability.Source: Red Hat security advisory for CVE-2021-31542 (CC BY 4.0)
| Product | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat OpenStack Platform 16.1 | python-django20-0:2.0.13-16.el8ost.1 | RHSA-2021:5070 |
| Red Hat Satellite 6.10 for RHEL 7 | python3-django-0:2.2.24-1.el7pc | RHSA-2021:4702 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2021-31542 in your dependencies?
Find it across PyPI, including transitive dependencies.