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GitLabApplication

CVE-2021-39875

MEDIUM · 5.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-10-05
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 14.1.7 / 14.2.5 or later.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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
In all versions of GitLab CE/EE since version 13.6, it is possible to see pending invitations of any public group or public project by visiting an API endpoint.

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 confidence

In GitLab CE/EE versions 13.6 and later, an API endpoint for public groups and projects exposes pending invitation data without proper authorization checks, allowing any user to view sensitive invitation details (email addresses, names, and other enrollment information) for public groups and projects they should not have access to.

MitigationUpgrade to GitLab versions 14.3.2, 14.2.5, or 14.1.6 or later, or apply available security patches. Alternatively, if upgrade is not immediately feasible, restrict access to sensitive group/project membership data through additional access controls.

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
Affected:>= 13.6.0, < 14.1.7>= 14.2.0, < 14.2.5= 4.3.0

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

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

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify installed GitLab version
    Run `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or check the GitLab admin area under Help > Version. Alternatively, check the omnibus package version with `gitlab-rpm -q gitlab-ee` or `gitlab-ce` depending on your edition.
    Affected if The installed version falls within >= 13.6.0, < 14.1.7; >= 14.2.0, < 14.2.5; or equals 14.3.0 (note: the original advisory shows = 4.3.0 which may be a typo for 14.3.0).
  2. Determine if public groups exist
    Use the GitLab API with a low-privilege or unauthenticated user: `GET /api/v4/groups?all_available=true` or browse the public groups page. Identify groups marked as public visibility.
    Affected if Any public groups exist in the GitLab instance.
  3. Check for pending group/project invitations
    Via GitLab admin area, navigate to a public group > Settings > Members > Invite members. Look for any pending invitations with email addresses. Alternatively, use API: `GET /api/v4/groups/:id/invitations` (requires authentication).
    Affected if There are pending invitations (emails not yet accepted) on any public group or project.
  4. Test unauthorized access to invitation data
    Using a user WITHOUT admin or owner privileges, make an API request to a public group's invitations endpoint: `GET /api/v4/groups/:group_id/invitations` or for projects: `GET /api/v4/projects/:project_id/invitations`. Compare the response against what the user should legitimately see.
    Affected if The API returns pending invitation details (email addresses, names) for groups/projects the test user does not own or administer.

You are affected if running a GitLab version in the affected ranges AND your instance has public groups or projects with pending member invitations, AND a low-privilege user can retrieve those invitation details via the API without proper authorization.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 14.1.7 / 14.2.5 or later
Fixed in 14.1.714.2.5
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to GitLab versions 14.3.2, 14.2.5, or 14.1.6 or later, or apply available security patches. Alternatively, if upgrade is not immediately feasible, restrict access to sensitive group/project membership data through additional access controls.

Recommended fix High confidence

14.1.7, 14.2.5, or latest stable 14.3.x+

  1. Identify the currently installed GitLab version using `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or the GitLab admin panel
  2. Backup the GitLab database and repository data before upgrading
  3. Consult the GitLab upgrade documentation for your current version to ensure a supported upgrade path
  4. Upgrade to version 14.1.7 or later if currently on 14.1.x
  5. Upgrade to version 14.2.5 or later if currently on 14.2.x
  6. Alternatively, upgrade to the latest stable version (14.3.0 or higher) which contains all security fixes
  7. After upgrade, verify the fix by confirming the API endpoint no longer returns pending invitations for public groups/projects
Caveat Review GitLab 14.x release notes for any breaking changes between your current version and target version; some upgrades may require intermediate steps

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

Fix this in GitLab Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-39875 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data