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Dhis 2Application · Dhis2

CVE-2021-39179

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-10-29
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.35.7 / 2.36.4 or later.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Public exploit Remotely reachable Zero-click Patch available

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 · unedited
DHIS 2 is an information system for data capture, management, validation, analytics and visualization. A SQL Injection vulnerability in the Tracker component in DHIS2 Server allows authenticated remote attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands via unspecified vectors. This vulnerability affects the `/api/trackedEntityInstances` and `/api/trackedEntityInstances/query` API endpoints in all DHIS2 versions 2.34, 2.35, and 2.36. It also affects versions 2.32 and 2.33 which have reached _end of support_ - exceptional security updates have been added to the latest *end of support* builds for these versions. Versions 2.31 and older are unaffected. The system is vulnerable to attack only from users that are logged in to DHIS2, and there is no known way of exploiting the vulnerability without first being logged in as a DHIS2 user. The vulnerability is not exposed to a non-malicious user - the vulnerability requires a conscious attack to be exploited. A successful exploit of this vulnerability could allow the malicious user to read, edit and delete data in the DHIS2 instance. There are no known exploits of the security vulnerabilities addressed by these patch releases. Security patches are available in DHIS2 versions 2.32-EOS, 2.33-EOS, 2.34.7, 2.35.7, and 2.36.4. There is no straightforward known workaround for DHIS2 instances using the Tracker functionality other than upgrading the affected DHIS2 server to one of the patches in which this vulnerability has been fixed. For implementations which do NOT use Tracker functionality, it may be possible to block all network access to POST to the `/api/trackedEntityInstances`, and `/api/trackedEntityInstances/query` endpoints as a temporary workaround while waiting to upgrade.

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
How this class of weakness works · CWE-89

User input is woven into a database query, letting an attacker rewrite the query's logic. From there they can read, alter, or destroy data — frequently the entire database. The reliable fix is parameterised queries (prepared statements), so input is always treated as data and never as SQL.

General guidance for the sql injection class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

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
Dhis 2Application
Affected:>= 2.32.0, <= 2.32.7>= 2.33.0, <= 2.33.9>= 2.35.0, < 2.35.7>= 2.36.0, < 2.36.4

CVSS 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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 2.35.7 / 2.36.4 or later
Fixed in 2.35.72.36.4
Vendor patch github.com →
Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to DHIS2 version 2.32-EOS (for 2.32.x), 2.33-EOS (for 2.33.x), 2.34.7 (for 2.34.x), 2.35.7 (for 2.35.x), or 2.36.4 (for 2.36.x)

  1. 1. Identify the current DHIS2 version by checking the server configuration or system information.
  2. 2. Determine which upgrade path applies based on current version: if 2.32.x upgrade to 2.32-EOS; if 2.33.x upgrade to 2.33-EOS; if 2.34.x upgrade to 2.34.7; if 2.35.x upgrade to 2.35.7; if 2.36.x upgrade to 2.36.4.
  3. 3. Backup the DHIS2 database and configuration files before performing the upgrade.
  4. 4. Stop the DHIS2 application server.
  5. 5. Upgrade DHIS2 to the appropriate fixed version (2.32-EOS, 2.33-EOS, 2.34.7, 2.35.7, or 2.36.4) following the standard upgrade procedure.
  6. 6. Start the DHIS2 application server and verify the upgrade was successful.
  7. 7. As a temporary workaround before upgrading, if Tracker functionality is not used, configure the web server or firewall to block POST requests to /api/trackedEntityInstances and /api/trackedEntityInstances/query endpoints.
Caveat Review DHIS2 release notes for the target version for any breaking changes or migration requirements

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

We can perform the upgrade in your staging environment and verify nothing breaks — typical engagement from $1,950. Get the upgrade done

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

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Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-39179 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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