GitLab · Community and Enterprise Editions
CVE-2021-22205
GitLab Community and Enterprise Editions Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
What it is
An issue has been discovered in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions starting from 11.9. GitLab was not properly validating image files that were passed to a file parser which resulted in a remote command execution.
CISA: GitHub Community and Enterprise Editions that utilize the ability to upload images through GitLab Workhorse are vulnerable to remote code execution. Workhorse passes image file extensions through ExifTool, which improperly validates the image files.
What to do
Apply updates per vendor instructions.
Deadline for US federal agencies: November 17, 2021
- Added to the CISA list
- November 3, 2021
- Published
- April 23, 2021
- Severity
- Critical 10.0 CVSS 3.1
- Chance of attacks in the next 30 days (EPSS)
- 99.7% in the top 0.1% of all known vulnerabilities
- Weakness
- CWE-20 CWE-95
- More details
- NVD · CVE.org · CISA
All references (5)
- https://hackerone.com/reports/1154542
- https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/327121
- https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/cves/-/blob/master/2021/CVE-2021-22205.json
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164768/GitLab-Unauthenticated-Remote-ExifTool-Command-Injection.html
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164994/GitLab-13.10.2-Remote-Code-Execution.html
More exploited flaws from GitLab
| Added | Vulnerability | Product | Severity | Attack chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 3, 2026 | Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF) | Community and Enterprise Editions | Medium 6.8 | 36% |
| Sep 11, 2026 | Path Traversal | Community Edition and Enterprise Edition | Critical 10.0 | 97% |
| Feb 18, 2026 | Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF) | GitLab | Medium 6.8 | 53% |
| May 1, 2024 | Community and Enterprise Editions Improper Access Control | GitLab CE/EE | Critical 10.0 | 94% |
Sources: Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (CISA, public domain), CVE records (cve.org) and EPSS (FIRST). The chance of attacks is the EPSS estimate that someone will try to exploit the flaw in the next 30 days.