Pug is an npm package which is a high-performance template engine. In pug before version 3.0.1, if a remote attacker was able to control the pretty option of the pug compiler, e.g. if you spread a user provided object such as the query parameters of a request into the pug template inputs, it was possible for them to achieve remote code execution on the node.js backend. This is fixed in version 3.0.1. This advisory applies to multiple pug packages including "pug", "pug-code-gen". pug-code-gen has a backported fix at version 2.0.3. This advisory is not exploitable if there is no way for un-trusted input to be passed to pug as the pretty option, e.g. if you compile templates in advance before applying user input to them, you do not need to upgrade.
CVE-2021-21353
This medium-severity CVE scores 6.8 under NVD CVSS v3. EPSS exploit probability: 4.3%, top 10% of all CVEs by exploit prediction. GitHub Security Advisory data not yet ingested — confidence will rise once GHSA publishes (typical lag: hours to days for open-source ecosystem CVEs; never for infrastructure-only CVEs).
- Lower severity and no public exploit yet
No vendor fix yet — apply a workaround or compensating control (WAF / firewall / segmentation) and watch for a patch.
- CVSS v3
- 6.8
- EG Score
- 6.8(medium)
- EG Risk
- 51(Track)EG Risk 51/100SSVC: Track
EG Risk is EchelonGraph's 0–100 priority score: it fuses intrinsic severity with real-world exploitation and automatability so you can rank equal-severity CVEs and fix the most dangerous first. Higher = act sooner. Distinct from the 0–10 EG Score (severity).
How it’s computedSeverity68% × 45%Exploitation40% × 40%Automatability30% × 15%Action: Routine — remediate on your standard cadence. - EPSS
- 90.1%
- KEV
- Not listed
Published
March 3, 2021
Last Modified
May 27, 2025
References (14)
- security-advisories@githubhttps://github.com/pugjs/pug/commit/991e78f7c4220b2f8da042877c6f0ef5a4683be0
- security-advisories@githubhttps://github.com/pugjs/pug/issues/3312
- security-advisories@githubhttps://github.com/pugjs/pug/pull/3314
- security-advisories@githubhttps://github.com/pugjs/pug/releases/tag/pug%403.0.1
- security-advisories@githubhttps://github.com/pugjs/pug/security/advisories/GHSA-p493-635q-r6gr
- security-advisories@githubhttps://www.npmjs.com/package/pug
- security-advisories@githubhttps://www.npmjs.com/package/pug-code-gen
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://github.com/pugjs/pug/commit/991e78f7c4220b2f8da042877c6f0ef5a4683be0
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://github.com/pugjs/pug/issues/3312
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://github.com/pugjs/pug/pull/3314
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://github.com/pugjs/pug/releases/tag/pug%403.0.1
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://github.com/pugjs/pug/security/advisories/GHSA-p493-635q-r6gr
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://www.npmjs.com/package/pug
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://www.npmjs.com/package/pug-code-gen
Affected Packages
(2 across 1 ecosystem)
npm(2)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| pug | — | 3.0.1 | — |
| pug-code-gen | — | 3.0.2 | — |
Weakness Classification(2)
MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration — the root-cause categories this CVE belongs to.
Data Freshness Timeline
(refreshed 11× in last 7d / 50× in last 30d)
Each row is a source pipeline that fetched or updated this CVE on that date, with what changed. For example, "NVD update" means NVD published or revised its analysis for this CVE; "MITRE cvelistV5" means we ingested or refreshed it from the CNA feed. Most recent first.
Showing the most recent 100 of 104 total refreshes for this CVE.
- 2026-07-23 14:15 UTCEPSS rescore
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Publicly available exploits
(1 reference)Working exploit code is in the public domain (1 GitHub PoC). Defenders should treat patch urgency accordingly — public PoCs typically lead to mass-exploitation within 24-72 hours.
- Open source ↗GitHub PoCjinsu9758/PUG-RCE-CVE-2021-21353-POCFirst seen Mar 29, 2025
Related CVEs(same CWE)
Frequently asked(5)
What is CVE-2021-21353?
When was CVE-2021-21353 disclosed?
Is CVE-2021-21353 actively exploited?
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2021-21353?
How do I remediate CVE-2021-21353?
Dependency Blast Radius
See which npm, PyPI, Go, and Maven packages are affected by CVE-2021-21353
Is Your Infrastructure Affected by CVE-2021-21353?
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