Background exploitation KEV catalog No authentication
CVE-2021-22681

Rockwell Multiple Products Insufficient Protected Credentials Vulnerability

Rockwell Automation Studio 5000 Logix Designer Versions 21 and later, and RSLogix 5000 Versions 16 through 20 use a key to verify Logix controllers are communicating with Rockwell Automation CompactLogix 1768, 1769, 5370, 5380, 5480:…

CheckOps priority index
8.2/10 Patch within 24 h
Severity9.8
Probability6.4
Exploitation4/5

Severity = CVSS. Probability = EPSS (FIRST). Exploitation = public signals: KEV, EUVD, ransomware, EPSS above 10 %, no account required.

EPSS · today 63.6% higher than 99.2% of CVEs
CVSS 3.1 9.8 AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:
Exploited for 243 days 05 Mar 2026
CISA due date 26 Mar 2026 for US federal agencies

Exploitation probability EPSS · FIRST

05010026 Sep05 Oct15 Oct24 Oct02 Nov
EPSS probability (%)Percentile among all CVEs

Exploitation signals 4 / 5

  • KEV catalog (CISA)05 Mar 2026
  • Exploited in EUVD (ENISA)05 Mar 2026
  • Used by ransomwareno
  • EPSS above 10 %63.6%
  • No account, over the networkyes

What to do

Fix

Apply the vendor’s fix as soon as it is available.

CISA guidance: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

Meanwhile

Take the service off the internet or restrict access to it, watch the logs and look for signs of compromise.

Manufacturers (CRA)

Exploited vulnerability in your product: early warning to ENISA within 24 h, then notification within 72 h (Article 14 of the Cyber Resilience Act). The CRA explained

Description ENISA EUVD

Rockwell Automation Studio 5000 Logix Designer Versions 21 and later, and RSLogix 5000 Versions 16 through 20 use a key to verify Logix controllers are communicating with Rockwell Automation CompactLogix 1768, 1769, 5370, 5380, 5480: ControlLogix 5550, 5560, 5570, 5580; DriveLogix 5560, 5730, 1794-L34; Compact GuardLogix 5370, 5380; GuardLogix 5570, 5580; SoftLogix 5800. Rockwell Automation Studio 5000 Logix Designer Versions 21 and later and RSLogix 5000: Versions 16 through 20 are vulnerable because an unauthenticated attacker could bypass this verification mechanism and authenticate with Rockwell Automation CompactLogix 1768, 1769, 5370, 5380, 5480: ControlLogix 5550, 5560, 5570, 5580; DriveLogix 5560, 5730, 1794-L34; Compact GuardLogix 5370, 5380; GuardLogix 5570, 5580; SoftLogix 5800.

Affected products

Rockwell Automation Studio 5000 Logix Designer, RSLogix 5000, Logix ControllersMultiple Products
Affected versions
  • ControlLogix 5550, 5560, 5570, 5580
  • Compact GuardLogix 5370, 5380
  • RSLogix 5000 Versions 16 through 20
  • SoftLogix 5800
  • Studio 5000 Logix Designer: Versions 21 and later
  • CompactLogix 1768, 1769, 5370, 5380, 5480
  • DriveLogix 5560, 5730, 1794-L34
  • GuardLogix 5570, 5580
Weaknesses (CWE)

Open source packages OSV

Affected libraries according to OSV, with fixed versions.

Timeline

  1. Published

  2. Exploitation reported (ENISA)

  3. Added to the KEV catalog

  4. CISA remediation due date

  5. EPSS peak: 63.6%

References

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Sources: CISA KEV · ENISA EUVD · FIRST EPSS · OSV. Public data aggregated by CheckOps, updated automatically. Source texts remain the property of their authors. All exploited vulnerabilities