CVE-2022-21797 is a high-severity (CVSS 7.3) Code Injection vulnerability in joblib. 2 public exploit or proof-of-concept references are indexed, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for joblib — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Arbitrary Code Execution
Exploitation Status
Proof-of-concept exploit code exists
- CISA’s SSVC triage found public proof-of-concept exploit code for this CVE, though no confirmed active exploitation.
- CISA assesses this as automatable — exploitation doesn’t require manual, per-target effort, which raises the odds of mass scanning and opportunistic attacks.
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2022-21797.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
Where this sits among everything scored
Real-World Exposure
joblibReal-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
The package joblib from 0 and before 1.2.0 are vulnerable to Arbitrary Code Execution via the pre_dispatch flag in Parallel() class due to the eval() statement.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐍PyPI | joblib | all versions | 1.2.0pip install --upgrade 'joblib==1.2.0' |
Affected Products
debian linuxdebianfedorafedoraprojectjoblibjoblib_projectResearch use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for joblib, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update joblib to 1.2.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2022-21797 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Stop passing untrusted input into the interpreter or shell: call the affected binary with an argument array rather than a composed command string, reject anything outside a strict allowlist of expected values, and run the component under an account that cannot reach beyond the work it legitimately does.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2022-21797 in your dependencies?
Find it across PyPI, including transitive dependencies.