CVE-2021-32471

HIGH

MIT Universal Turing Machine - Remote Code Execution via Crafted Input

Title source: llm
STIX 2.1

Exploitation Summary

EIP tracks 1 public exploit for CVE-2021-32471. PoCs published by intrinsic-propensity.

AI-analyzed exploit summary This repository contains a functional implementation of a Universal Turing Machine (UTM) as described by Minsky, with a default exploit achieving arbitrary code execution. The exploit leverages the intrinsic properties of the UTM to execute arbitrary code, demonstrating the vulnerability detailed in CVE-2021-32471.

Description

Insufficient input validation in the Marvin Minsky 1967 implementation of the Universal Turing Machine allows program users to execute arbitrary code via crafted data. For example, a tape head may have an unexpected location after the processing of input composed of As and Bs (instead of 0s and 1s). NOTE: the discoverer states "this vulnerability has no real-world implications."

Exploits (1)

nomisec WORKING POC 78 stars
by intrinsic-propensity · poc
https://github.com/intrinsic-propensity/turing-machine

This repository contains a functional implementation of a Universal Turing Machine (UTM) as described by Minsky, with a default exploit achieving arbitrary code execution. The exploit leverages the intrinsic properties of the UTM to execute arbitrary code, demonstrating the vulnerability detailed in CVE-2021-32471.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Complex
Reliability
Theoretical
Target: Universal Turing Machine (Minsky's UTM)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Python 3.7 environment
mistral-large-3 · analyzed Feb 18, 2026 Full analysis →

References (2)

Core 2
Core References
Third Party Advisory x_refsource_misc
https://arxiv.org/abs/2105.02124
Exploit, Third Party Advisory x_refsource_misc
https://github.com/intrinsic-propensity/turing-machine

Scores

CVSS v3 7.8
EPSS 0.0085
EPSS Percentile 53.8%
Attack Vector LOCAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Details

CWE
CWE-20
Status published
Products (1)
mit/universal_turing_machine
Published May 10, 2021
Tracked Since Feb 18, 2026