CVE-2021-3982: Linux distributions using CAP_SYS_NICE for gnome-shell may be exposed to a privilege escalation issue

Routine

MEDIUM 5.5WATCHLISTMITIGATE

CVE-2021-3982 is a medium-severity flaw (CVSS 5.5) affecting gnome-shell. Below: why it ranks where it does, which versions are affected, what to do, and the exact commands.

Linux distributions using CAP_SYS_NICE for gnome-shell may be exposed to a privilege escalation issue. An attacker, with low privilege permissions, may take advantage of the way CAP_SYS_NICE is currently implemented and eventually load code to increase its process scheduler priority leading to possible DoS of other services running in the same machine.

Why this priority

On your watchlist

No fix is published yet: follow the downgrade or mitigation steps.

Risk facts

CVSS score	5.5 (Medium)
Attack vector	Local
Attack complexity	Low
Privileges needed	Low
User interaction	None
EPSS exploit chance	0.3% (top 79%)
CISA exploited list	No
Weakness	CWE-273
Published	2022-04-29
Last modified	2026-06-17

Publisher (CNA): Red Hat, Inc. · Vendor: gnome

Last updated 2026-06-17 · Sources: CVE Program, NVD, CISA KEV, EPSS and vendor advisories · How we score

Am I affected?

Timeline

2022-04-29 17:15 UTCPublished CVE record published
2026-06-17 04:06 UTCUpdated Record last modified

gnome gnome-shell MITIGATE

Affected: all versions

Fixed in: no fixed release known

Safe to downgrade to: no unaffected older release

1. Check installed version

apt-cache policy gnome-shell || rpm -q gnome-shell || gnome-shell --version

No fixed or unaffected release known

Apply the vendor mitigation from the advisory, disable the affected feature, or restrict network access.

Verify at the official source NVD · CVE Program · Report a problem with this page
Scores and fixes here are computed automatically from those and other public sources. Confirm with the vendor advisory before changing production systems.

Quick answers

How do I fix CVE-2021-3982?

gnome-shell: mitigate or apply the listed mitigation. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Is CVE-2021-3982 being exploited?

CVE-2021-3982 is not on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list at the time of the last update. Check again, as this can change.

What does CVE-2021-3982 affect?

CVE-2021-3982 affects gnome-shell. Severity is medium (CVSS 5.5). Linux distributions using CAP_SYS_NICE for gnome-shell may be exposed to a privilege escalation issue. An attacker, with low privilege permissions, may take advantage of the way CAP_SYS_NICE is currently implemented and eventually load code

How urgent is CVE-2021-3982?

Priority 30/100. On your watchlist

Related CVEs

CVE-2023-43090 MEDIUM 5.5 UPGRADE MITIGATE A vulnerability was found in GNOME Shell
CVE-2021-20315 MEDIUM 6.1 UPGRADE MITIGATE A locking protection bypass flaw was found in some versions of gnome-shell as shipped within CentOS Stream 8,
CVE-2020-17489 MEDIUM 4.3 UPGRADE MITIGATE An issue was discovered in certain configurations of GNOME gnome-shell through 3.36.4

References

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