CVERadar
HIGH · CVSS 3.1 8.1CISA KEV · added 2024-12-23EPSS 17.58% (p97)Threat level 61

CVE-2021-44207: Acclaim Systems USAHERDS Use of Hard-Coded Credentials Vulnerability

Acclaim Systems · USAHERDS · NVD published 2021-12-22 · posted 2024-12-23 · last modified 2026-06-17

What it is

Acclaim USAHERDS through 7.4.0.1 uses hard-coded credentials.

WeaknessCWE-798
CVSS vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H (source: [email protected])
CISA due date2025-01-13 (for US federal agencies under BOD; a good deadline for everyone)
ATT&CK tacticsInitial Access → Persistence → Privilege Escalation → Stealth

Exploitation evidence

First exploit evidence seen: 2024-12-23 (earliest date across the sources below).

Exploited in the wild

  • CISA KEV: listed since 2024-12-23. Source

Sources: CISA KEV.

Defend the Chain

The attack chain for CVE-2021-44207 laid across the MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise tactics. Solid cards come from the MITRE CTID KEV mappings; dashed cards are inferred by CVERadar from the CWE or description. Correct defences are real ATT&CK mitigations for that technique.

Threat level 61/100
Defender level 1 · 0 XP
Chain links broken: 0/1

Reconnaissance

Resource Development

Initial Access

Execution

Persistence

Privilege Escalation

Stealth

Defense Impairment

Credential Access

Discovery

Lateral Movement

Collection

Command and Control

Exfiltration

Impact

Pick a red technique card on the board, then choose the defence that stops it.

Defend against T1078.001 Default Accounts Inferred

Inferred from CWE CWE-798

How to fix it

CISA required action

Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable. Please contact the product developer for support and vulnerability mitigation. (source: CISA KEV)

Fixed versions

  • acclaimsystems usaherds: versions up to and including 7.4.0.1 are affected; check the vendor advisory for the fixed release.

Derived from the NVD CPE configuration (versionEndExcluding / versionEndIncluding). Always confirm with the vendor advisory.

Vendor advisories and patches

MITRE ATT&CK mitigations for this chain

  • M1032 Multi-factor Authentication (for T1078.001) : Implement multi-factor authentication (MFA) for default accounts whenever possible to prevent unauthorized access, even if credentials for these accounts are compromised. MFA adds an additional layer of security that requires more than just a username and password, making it significantly harder for adversaries to expl
  • M1027 Password Policies (for T1078.001) : Applications and appliances that utilize default username and password should be changed immediately after the installation, and before deployment to a production environment.

Detection Generic guidance

  • Initial Access: Alert on unusual requests to the affected service (odd paths, oversized payloads, exploit strings) in WAF, reverse-proxy and application logs.
  • Persistence: Look for new files in web roots, new scheduled tasks/services, and new accounts created after the exposure window.
  • Privilege Escalation: Alert on processes gaining SYSTEM/root unexpectedly, and on exploitation crashes of privileged services.

Response checklist Generic guidance

  1. Inventory: find every instance of the affected product and version (include internet-facing and forgotten ones).
  2. Patch or mitigate per the vendor advisory; if you cannot patch, remove internet exposure or apply the vendor workaround.
  3. Assume compromise if the system was exposed before patching: hunt for the indicators in the advisory and review logs back to the disclosure date.
  4. Rotate credentials and secrets stored on or used by the affected system if compromise cannot be ruled out.

Sources