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GitLabApplication

CVE-2021-39942

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-01-18
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 14.3.6 / 14.4.4 or later.
See remediation →
71/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable 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
A denial of service vulnerability in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions starting from 12.0 before 14.3.6, all versions starting from 14.4 before 14.4.4, all versions starting from 14.5 before 14.5.2, allows low-privileged users to bypass file size limits in the NPM package repository to potentially cause denial of service.

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

This vulnerability allows low-privileged users to bypass file size limits when uploading NPM packages to the GitLab package registry. By circumventing these restrictions, an attacker can upload abnormally large packages, potentially consuming excessive storage and bandwidth resources leading to denial of service.

MitigationUpgrade GitLab to version 14.3.6, 14.4.4, 14.5.2 or later to patch the vulnerability. Additionally, review and enforce file size limits at the infrastructure level as a defense-in-depth measure.

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:>= 12.0, < 14.3.6>= 14.4, < 14.4.4>= 14.5, < 14.5.2

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
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

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

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

  1. Identify installed GitLab version
    Run `sudo gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or check the GitLab admin panel under Help > Version to find the exact installed version number.
    Affected if The version falls within the affected ranges: >= 12.0 and < 14.3.6, OR >= 14.4 and < 14.4.4, OR >= 14.5 and < 14.5.2
  2. Verify NPM package registry is accessible
    Navigate to Project > Package Registry or check if the API endpoint `/api/v4/projects/:id/packages` returns a 200 response for your projects.
    Affected if The package registry feature is enabled and projects have package registry access enabled for users.
  3. Confirm low-privilege user access to package registry
    As a user with Developer or lower role (not Owner or Maintainer), attempt to access the package registry for any project via the web UI or API.
    Affected if Low-privileged users can access the package registry and initiate package uploads.
  4. Check file size limit configuration
    Review GitLab settings at Admin Area > Packages & Registries > General or Project > Settings > Packages and Registries for configured maximum package size limits.
    Affected if File size limits are configured but users can potentially bypass them through the NPM upload mechanism.

You are affected if your GitLab version is within the vulnerable ranges AND the NPM package registry is accessible to low-privileged users who could bypass file size limits.

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 14.3.6 / 14.4.4 / 14.5.2 or later
Fixed in 14.3.614.4.414.5.2
Interim mitigation

Upgrade GitLab to version 14.3.6, 14.4.4, 14.5.2 or later to patch the vulnerability. Additionally, review and enforce file size limits at the infrastructure level as a defense-in-depth measure.

Recommended fix High confidence

GitLab 14.5.2 (or later stable release)

  1. Back up your GitLab instance data before proceeding with the upgrade
  2. Plan the upgrade considering your current version and the target version (14.5.2 or later)
  3. For GitLab installations using Omnibus: run 'sudo gitlab-ctl stop' to stop GitLab services
  4. For Omnibus installations: upgrade by following the official upgrade path at https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/update/index.html#upgrade-paths
  5. For source installations: follow the upgrade instructions at https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/update/installation.html
  6. After upgrade, run 'sudo gitlab-ctl start' to start GitLab services
  7. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking GitLab version and ensuring services are running
  8. Test NPM package upload functionality to confirm the vulnerability is remediated
Caveat Major version upgrades may require careful planning; review GitLab upgrade documentation for database migrations and breaking changes between major versions

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
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
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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-2021-39942 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