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Risk Context

This vulnerability allows attackers to perform path traversal attacks through specially crafted URLs, potentially exposing sensitive files outside the document root. On internet-facing Apache servers, this can lead to information disclosure or remote code execution if CGI is enabled. Given the asset's exposure on port 443/tcp, immediate remediation is recommended.

Remediation Steps

1. Identify the running Apache version using your distribution's package manager (e.g., apache2 -v on Debian/Ubuntu, httpd -v on RHEL/CentOS).
2. Update Apache HTTP Server to version 2.4.51 or later via your distribution's official package repository.
3. Restart the Apache service to apply the patch.
4. If patching is not immediately possible, apply the workaround: ensure that all <Directory /> blocks have require all denied and that Options does not include FollowSymLinks without SymLinksIfOwnerMatch.

Verification

1. Check the installed version: apache2 -v (or httpd -v) — should show 2.4.51 or higher.
2. Test the vulnerability is patched by sending a probe request to a known path-traversal payload (do this from a controlled test environment): curl -I http://target/cgi-bin/.%2e/.%2e/etc/passwd A patched server returns 400 Bad Request.
3. Run a follow-up vulnerability scan to confirm CVE-2021-41773 no longer appears in findings.

Estimated Effort

30 minutes per host for the patch and restart, assuming standard package management workflow. Add 15 minutes per host for verification testing. Schedule during a maintenance window if the service has uptime requirements.