CVE-2021-31359: A local privilege escalation vulnerability in Juniper Networks Junos OS and Junos OS Evolved allows a local, low-privileged user to cause the Juniper ...

Description

A local privilege escalation vulnerability in Juniper Networks Junos OS and Junos OS Evolved allows a local, low-privileged user to cause the Juniper DHCP daemon (jdhcpd) process to crash, resulting in a Denial of Service (DoS), or execute arbitrary commands as root. Continued processing of malicious input will repeatedly crash the system and sustain the Denial of Service (DoS) condition. Systems are only vulnerable if jdhcpd is running, which can be confirmed via the 'show system processes' command. For example: root@host# run show system processes extensive | match dhcp 26537 root -16 0 97568K 13692K RUN 0 0:01 3.71% jdhcpd This issue affects: Juniper Networks Junos OS: All versions, including the following supported releases: 15.1 versions prior to 15.1R7-S10; 17.4 versions prior to 17.4R3-S5; 18.3 versions prior to 18.3R3-S5; 18.4 versions prior to 18.4R3-S9; 19.1 versions prior to 19.1R3-S6; 19.2 versions prior to 19.2R1-S7, 19.2R3-S3; 19.3 versions prior to 19.3R2-S6, 19.3R3-S3; 19.4 versions prior to 19.4R3-S6; 20.1 versions prior to 20.1R2-S2, 20.1R3-S1; 20.2 versions prior to 20.2R3-S2; 20.3 versions prior to 20.3R3; 20.4 versions prior to 20.4R2-S1, 20.4R3; 21.1 versions prior to 21.1R1-S1, 21.1R2. Juniper Networks Junos OS Evolved: All versions prior to 20.4R2-S3-EVO; All versions of 21.1-EVO.

Metrics

CVSS 3.1

7.8/10

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

EPSS Probability

0.24%

14.5th percentile

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days. Learn more

Weakness Enumeration

Affected Software

Vendor	Product	Versions	Update
Juniper	Junos	15.1	—
Juniper	Junos	17.4	—
Juniper	Junos	18.3	—
Juniper	Junos	18.4	—
Juniper	Junos	19.1	—
Juniper	Junos	19.2	—
Juniper	Junos	19.3	—
Juniper	Junos	19.4	R1
Juniper	Junos	20.1	R1
Juniper	Junos	20.2	R1
Juniper	Junos	20.3	R1
Juniper	Junos	20.4	R1
Juniper	Junos	21.1	R1
Juniper	Junos Os Evolved	<= 20.3	—
Juniper	Junos Os Evolved	20.4	R1
Juniper	Junos Os Evolved	21.1	—

References

https://kb.juniper.net/JSA11222Vendor Advisory
https://kb.juniper.net/JSA11222Vendor Advisory

Timeline

Published: Oct 19, 2021
Last Modified: Jun 17, 2026
Status: Modified

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2021-31359?

A local privilege escalation vulnerability in Juniper Networks Junos OS and Junos OS Evolved allows a local, low-privileged user to cause the Juniper DHCP daemon (jdhcpd) process to crash, resulting in a Denial of Service (DoS), or execute arbitrary commands as root. Continued processing of malicious input will repeatedly crash the system and sustain the Denial of Service (DoS) condition. Systems are only vulnerable if jdhcpd is running, which can be confirmed via the 'show system processes' command. For example: root@host# run show system processes extensive | match dhcp 26537 root -16 0 97568K 13692K RUN 0 0:01 3.71% jdhcpd This issue affects: Juniper Networks Junos OS: All versions, including the following supported releases: 15.1 versions prior to 15.1R7-S10; 17.4 versions prior to 17.4R3-S5; 18.3 versions prior to 18.3R3-S5; 18.4 versions prior to 18.4R3-S9; 19.1 versions prior to 19.1R3-S6; 19.2 versions prior to 19.2R1-S7, 19.2R3-S3; 19.3 versions prior to 19.3R2-S6, 19.3R3-S3; 19.4 versions prior to 19.4R3-S6; 20.1 versions prior to 20.1R2-S2, 20.1R3-S1; 20.2 versions prior to 20.2R3-S2; 20.3 versions prior to 20.3R3; 20.4 versions prior to 20.4R2-S1, 20.4R3; 21.1 versions prior to 21.1R1-S1, 21.1R2. Juniper Networks Junos OS Evolved: All versions prior to 20.4R2-S3-EVO; All versions of 21.1-EVO.

How severe is CVE-2021-31359?

CVE-2021-31359 has a CVSS score of 7.8/10 (HIGH severity). The EPSS model estimates a 0.24% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

How do I fix CVE-2021-31359?

Check the vendor references and advisories linked above for patched versions and mitigation guidance. You can also run a Strix scan to test if your systems are affected.