GitLabApplication
CVE-2021-22189
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedStarting with version 13.7 the Gitlab CE/EE editions were affected by a security issue related to the validation of the certificates for the Fortinet OTP that could result in authentication issues.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceGitLab CE/EE versions 13.7 and later contain improper certificate validation for the Fortinet OTP (One-Time Password) integration. This vulnerability allows authentication issues due to the failure to properly validate SSL/TLS certificates when communicating with the Fortinet OTP service, potentially enabling man-in-the-middle attacks on the authentication flow.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data
GitLabApplication
< 13.6.7>= 13.7.0, < 13.7.7>= 13.8.0, < 13.8.4CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify your GitLab versionRun `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or check the GitLab admin area under /admin/about to find the exact version installedAffected if The installed version falls within < 13.6.7, >= 13.7.0 < 13.7.7, or >= 13.8.0 < 13.8.4
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Confirm Fortinet OTP integration is configuredCheck GitLab settings for Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) or look for Fortinet OTP configuration in the GitLab admin panel under Settings > General > Sign-up restrictions or authentication settingsAffected if Fortinet OTP is enabled or configured as a second-factor authentication method
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Verify the OTP Fortinet settingsReview the GitLab database or configuration files for any entries related to 'fortinet', 'forti', or 'otp' two-factor authentication providers in the authn_providers or similar tablesAffected if Fortinet OTP provider is listed as an active authentication method
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Check SSL certificate validation behaviorInspect network traffic or logs when GitLab communicates with the Fortinet OTP service endpoint to observe whether certificate validation failures are properly enforced or rejectedAffected if The integration accepts connections without validating the SSL/TLS certificate chain properly or allows connections to proceed with invalid certificates
You are affected if your GitLab version is within the vulnerable ranges AND Fortinet OTP integration is enabled as an authentication method in your environment.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor data13.6.713.7.713.8.4
Upgrade GitLab to a version where the certificate validation issue is resolved, or implement proper certificate chain validation in the Fortinet OTP integration configuration.
Fix this in GitLab
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-22189 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-22189 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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