Exploited

CVE-2021-44515

ManageEngine (Zoho) Endpoint Central (ex-Desktop Central) · Monitoring, ITSM and asset management

Zoho Desktop Central Authentication Bypass Vulnerability

At a glance

Exploited. Added to CISA’s catalog of exploited vulnerabilities on December 10, 2021.

Affected product: ManageEngine (Zoho) Endpoint Central (ex-Desktop Central) (category Monitoring, ITSM and asset management, indicative classification). Name in CISA’s catalog: Zoho Desktop Central.

What should I do?

Apply the security update from ManageEngine (Zoho).

Deadline set by CISA for US federal agencies: 14 days (due December 24, 2021). It only binds those agencies, but it is a useful measure of urgency.

ManageEngine (Zoho) security advisories page (general page, not the advisory for this vulnerability)
The vendor’s specific advisory is listed in the NVD references: CVE-2021-44515 on the NVD website.

Original text of the required action (CISA)

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Timeline

December 10, 2021 Exploitation confirmed Added to CISA’s KEV catalog
December 12, 2021 Vulnerability published Publication date (NVD)
December 24, 2021 CISA deadline Remediation deadline set for US federal agencies

The facts, with their sources

Exploitation confirmed: Yes, on December 10, 2021 Date added to the catalog of exploited vulnerabilities. Exploitation itself may have started earlier. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
Ransomware: No known use to date That does not guarantee it is not being used: the information is not public. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
Hunt for compromise: Not requested by CISA Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
CISA required action: Apply the security update from ManageEngine (Zoho). Rewritten by this site from CISA’s original text. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
CISA deadline: December 24, 2021, 14 days Set for US federal agencies: a measure of urgency, not an obligation elsewhere. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
Vulnerability published: December 12, 2021 Source: National Vulnerability Database (NVD), collected September 29, 2026 at 15:00 UTC
Product according to CISA: Zoho Desktop Central Filed by this site under “Monitoring, ITSM and asset management” (indicative classification). Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
CVSS vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Technical detail of the score: attack vector, complexity, impact. Source: National Vulnerability Database (NVD), collected September 29, 2026 at 15:00 UTC

Severity and activity

9.8 / 10 CVSS severity: critical

Score from the NVD. Collected Sep 29, 2026.

— Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days (EPSS)

FIRST’s EPSS model. Since exploitation is already confirmed, this figure is mostly useful to compare activity. Collected Sep 29, 2026.

Description

Zoho ManageEngine Desktop Central is vulnerable to authentication bypass, leading to remote code execution on the server, as exploited in the wild in December 2021. For Enterprise builds 10.1.2127.17 and earlier, upgrade to 10.1.2127.18. For Enterprise builds 10.1.2128.0 through 10.1.2137.2, upgrade to 10.1.2137.3. For MSP builds 10.1.2127.17 and earlier, upgrade to 10.1.2127.18. For MSP builds 10.1.2128.0 through 10.1.2137.2, upgrade to 10.1.2137.3.

Zoho Desktop Central contains an authentication bypass vulnerability that could allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code in the Desktop Central MSP server.

Summary from CISA (KEV catalog).

CERT-FR advisories

No advisory among the latest CERT-FR publications this site follows. That does not mean there are none.

Information reused under the Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab); the date of last update is shown for each advisory. This site is neither affiliated with nor endorsed by ANSSI.

Sources for this page

CISA KEV catalog: exploitation, date added, required action, deadline, ransomware.
NVD (NIST): CVSS severity, publication date, description, vendor references.
EPSS (FIRST): probability of exploitation.
CERT-FR: advisories and alerts (in French).
Brand and category: indicative classification by this site (method).