How severe is CVE-2021-45712?

No CVSS score has been assigned to CVE-2021-45712 yet. Review the advisory details and affected package list to assess your exposure.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2021-45712?

CVE-2021-45712 affects the following packages: rust-embed (crates.io). Ecosystems affected: crates.io.

How do I fix CVE-2021-45712?

Update rust-embed to 6.3.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2021-45712 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect CVE-2021-45712 in my crates.io dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for rust-embed, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.

How do I mitigate CVE-2021-45712 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

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.

Is CVE-2021-45712 actively exploited in the wild?

Yes. There are 2 known exploit references for CVE-2021-45712, including 2 in-the-wild exploitations observed on GitHub and other sources. Treat this as actively exploitable and prioritize patching immediately. All exploit code should only be run in an isolated sandbox environment for research or authorized testing — never against production systems without explicit written authorization.

What is the EPSS score for CVE-2021-45712?

CVE-2021-45712 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 1.6%, placing it in the 75th percentile of all CVEs. EPSS is maintained by FIRST.org and estimates the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. This score indicates relatively lower exploitation probability, though the CVSS severity should still guide your patching priority.

What type of vulnerability is CVE-2021-45712?

CVE-2021-45712 is classified as Path Traversal (CWE-22). This weakness type describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation. This is a high-impact weakness class that often enables remote code execution or data exposure.

When was CVE-2021-45712 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2021-45712 was published on June 17, 2022 and was last updated on November 8, 2023. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

🦀 crates.io

Not in CISA KEV

CVE-2021-45712 — rust-embed

CVE-2021-45712 is a Path Traversal vulnerability in rust-embed. 2 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for rust-embed — see the affected versions and patch details below.

RustEmbed generated `get` method allows for directory traversal when reading files from disk

Also known asGHSA-xrg3-hmf3-rvgwRUSTSEC-2021-0126

Published

Jun 17, 2022

Updated

Nov 8, 2023

Affected

1 pkg

Patched

1 / 1

Exploits

2 known

Exploitation data as of Oct 11, 2026 · OSV.dev, NVD, FIRST.org (EPSS)

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

1.6%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk0.00%

Lower risk than most CVEs75th percentile — riskier than 75% of all scored CVEsHighest risk

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.

Real-World Exposure

1 pkg affected

🦀rust-embed

Real-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects crates.io packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.

Description

When running in debug mode and the debug-embed (off by default) feature is not enabled, the generated get method does not check that the input path is a child of the folder given.

This allows attackers to read arbitrary files in the file system if they have control over the filename given. The following code will print the contents of your /etc/passwd if adjusted with a correct number of ../s depending on where it is run from.

#[derive(rust_embed::RustEmbed)]
#[folder = "src/"]
pub struct Asset;

fn main() {
    let d = Asset::get("../../../etc/passwd").unwrap().data;
    println!("{}", String::from_utf8_lossy(&d));
}

The flaw was corrected by canonicalizing the input filename and ensuring that it starts with the canonicalized folder path.

Affected Packages

1 total 1 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
🦀crates.io	`rust-embed`	all versions	6.3.0`cargo update -p rust-embed --precise 6.3.0`

Affected Products

1 product · 1 configurations

Application

rust-embedrust-embed_project

< 6.3.0

range

Exploits & PoCs

Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.

An issue was discovered in the rust-embed crate before 6.3.0 for Rust. A…

rustsec.orgNVDJan 2022

An issue was discovered in the rust-embed crate before 6.3.0 for Rust. A…

raw.githubusercontent.comNVDJan 2022

Detection & mitigation playbook

Open-source dependency

Detect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for rust-embed, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update rust-embed to 6.3.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2021-45712 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.

Frequently Asked Questions

When running in debug mode and the `debug-embed` (off by default) feature is not enabled, the generated `get` method does not check that the input path is a child of the folder given. This allows attackers to read arbitrary files in the file system if they have control over the filename given. The following code will print the contents of your `/etc/passwd` if adjusted with a correct number of `../`s depending on where it is run from. ```rust #[derive(rust_embed::RustEmbed)] #[folder = "src/"] pub struct Asset; fn main() { let d = Asset::get("../../../etc/passwd").unwrap().data; pr

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

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