Nullptr Dereference in Protobuf (Google LLC Protobuf)

CVE-2021-22570

MEDIUM 6.5

At a glance

Source: NVD
EPSS: EPSS 2.66 % · percentile 86 (2026-10-29)
State: PUBLISHED
Published: 2022-01-26 00:00 UTC
Updated: 2025-04-21 13:56 UTC
Assigner: Google
NVD status: Modified

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Description

Nullptr dereference when a null char is present in a proto symbol. The symbol is parsed incorrectly, leading to an unchecked call into the proto file's name during generation of the resulting error message. Since the symbol is incorrectly parsed, the file is nullptr. We recommend upgrading to version 3.15.0 or greater.

Weaknesses (CWE)

CWE-476 — NULL Pointer Dereference

References

Scores

Version	Score	Vector	Scored by
CVSS 3.1	MEDIUM 6.5	CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H	Google
CVSS 3.1	MEDIUM 6.5	CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H	NVD · cve-coordination@google.com (Secondary)
CVSS 3.1	MEDIUM 5.5	CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H	NVD · nvd@nist.gov (Primary)
CVSS 2.0	LOW 2.1	AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:P	NVD · nvd@nist.gov (Primary)

Advisories

GHSA-77rm-9x9h-xj3g — Withdrawn Advisory: NULL Pointer Dereference in Protocol Buffers
PYSEC-2022-48 — Nullptr dereference when a null char is present in a proto symbol. The symbol is parsed incorrectly, leading to an unchecked call into the proto file's name dur

European references

ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2022-0206
GCVE · GCVE-0-2021-22570

CERT-FR advisories

CERTFR-2026-AVI-1165 — Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits IBM · cert.ssi.gouv.fr
CERTFR-2026-AVI-0958 — Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits IBM · cert.ssi.gouv.fr
CERTFR-2026-AVI-0249 — Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits IBM · cert.ssi.gouv.fr
CERTFR-2025-AVI-0756 — Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits VMware · cert.ssi.gouv.fr
CERTFR-2023-AVI-0956 — Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits Splunk · cert.ssi.gouv.fr

Affected configurations (NVD CPE)

cpe:2.3:a:google:protobuf:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* < 3.15.0
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:11.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:34:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:35:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:36:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:oracle:mysql:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* ≤ 8.0.28
cpe:2.3:a:netapp:active_iq_unified_manager:-:*:*:*:*:vmware_vsphere:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:netapp:active_iq_unified_manager:-:*:*:*:*:windows:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:netapp:oncommand_insight:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:netapp:oncommand_workflow_automation:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:netapp:snapcenter:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

Affected products

Product	Versions
Google LLC · Protobuf	affected unspecified < 3.15.0

Sources

Source	Licence
CVE List (CVEProject cvelistV5)	CVE Program Terms of Use
EPSS (FIRST.org)	FIRST — attribution requested
ENISA EUVD	ENISA — reproduction authorised, source acknowledged
CERT-FR (ANSSI)	Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0
NVD (NIST) via fkie-cad/nvd-json-data-feeds	Public domain — this product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD

🟡 Nullptr Dereference in Protobuf (Google LLC Protobuf)