GitLabApplication
CVE-2021-22221
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 · uneditedAn issue has been discovered in GitLab affecting all versions starting from 12.9.0 before 13.10.5, all versions starting from 13.11.0 before 13.11.5, all versions starting from 13.12.0 before 13.12.2. Insufficient expired password validation in various operations allow user to maintain limited access after their password expired
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 · high confidenceGitLab versions 12.9.0 through 13.12.2 contain insufficient validation of expired passwords across various operations. The vulnerability allows authenticated users whose passwords have expired to retain limited system access rather than being properly locked out. This stems from missing or inadequate checks in the password expiration logic that should enforce complete account lockdown when a password expires.
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
>= 12.9.0, < 13.10.5>= 13.11.0, < 13.11.5>= 13.12.0, < 13.12.2CVSS 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
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N
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 the installed GitLab versionRun `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or inspect the version file at `/opt/gitlab/version` ( Omnibus) or `VERSION` file in the GitLab Rails directory (source installations)Affected if The version falls within 12.9.0 to 13.12.2 (specifically: >=12.9.0 and <13.10.5; or >=13.11.0 and <13.11.5; or >=13.12.0 and <13.12.2)
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Confirm password expiration feature is enabledIn GitLab admin panel, navigate to Settings > General > Sign-up restrictions and verify if password expiration is configured, or check the gitlab.rb file for `gitlab_rails['password_expiration_days']` settingAffected if Password expiration is configured (set to a positive number of days) and the GitLab version is within the affected range
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Identify users with expired passwordsAccess the GitLab Rails console (`gitlab-rails console -e production`) and run: `User.where("password_expires_at < ?", Time.current)` to list users whose passwords have expiredAffected if Any users are returned with password_expires_at in the past, indicating expired passwords exist in the system
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Verify if expired password users retain accessIn the Rails console, check session activity for users with expired passwords using: `User.where("password_expires_at < ?", Time.current).each { |u| puts "#{u.username}: #{u.current_sign_in_at}" }` or attempt API access with a token from an expired-password userAffected if Users with expired passwords show recent sign-in activity (current_sign_in_at is recent) or can successfully make API requests, indicating the vulnerability is present and exploitable
You are affected if your GitLab version is between 12.9.0 and 13.12.2, password expiration is enabled, and users with expired passwords can still access the system or perform actions.
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 data13.10.513.11.513.12.2
Upgrade GitLab to version 13.12.2 or later, or apply the relevant security patch. Organizations unable to upgrade immediately should review user access logs for accounts with expired passwords and consider manually revoking sessions for affected users.
Fix this in GitLab
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,224.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-22221 — 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-2021-22221 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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