dbcve.org
AirflowApplication · Apache

CVE-2021-45230

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-01-20
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.2.0 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
In Apache Airflow prior to 2.2.0. This CVE applies to a specific case where a User who has "can_create" permissions on DAG Runs can create Dag Runs for dags that they don't have "edit" permissions for.

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 confidence

In Apache Airflow versions prior to 2.2.0, an authorization bypass exists where users granted 'can_create' permission on DAG Runs can create DAG Runs for DAGs on which they do not have 'edit' permissions. This allows unauthorized execution of DAGs the user should not have access to modify or run.

MitigationUpgrade Apache Airflow to version 2.2.0 or later, which contains the authorization fix. Review existing user role assignments to ensure the principle of least privilege is applied.

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
AirflowApplication
Affected:>= 1.10.0, <= 1.10.15>= 2.0.0, < 2.2.0

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/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. Check installed Airflow version
    Run 'airflow version' or check the version in your deployment metadata. Compare against affected ranges: 1.10.0-1.10.15 or 2.0.0-2.1.x
    Affected if Installed version falls within >=1.10.0 to <=1.10.15 or >=2.0.0 to <2.2.0
  2. Confirm RBAC mode is enabled
    Check the Airflow webserver configuration (usually airflow.cfg) for 'rbac = True' under the [webserver] section, or inspect whether the RBAC UI is in use
    Affected if RBAC mode is enabled (this is required for the permission model this CVE exploits)
  3. Identify users with DAG Runs can_create permission
    Query the Airflow metadata database for users holding the 'can_create' permission on 'DAG Runs' resource, or review role permissions in the Airflow UI under Security > List Roles
    Affected if Users exist who have 'can_create' permission on DAG Runs
  4. Verify users lack DAG-level edit permissions
    For each user with 'can_create' on DAG Runs, check whether they also have 'can_edit' permission on specific DAGs they should not control
    Affected if Any user has 'can_create' on DAG Runs but lacks 'can_edit' on certain DAGs they could trigger

You are affected if running Airflow 1.10.0-1.10.15 or 2.0.0-2.1.x with RBAC enabled and users possess DAG Runs create permission without corresponding DAG edit permissions.

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 2.2.0 or later
Fixed in 2.2.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Apache Airflow to version 2.2.0 or later, which contains the authorization fix. Review existing user role assignments to ensure the principle of least privilege is applied.

Recommended fix High confidence

Apache Airflow 2.2.0 or later (preferably latest 2.x stable release)

  1. Review the Airflow upgrade checklist at https://airflow.apache.org/docs/apache-airflow/stable/upgrading-to-2.html
  2. Create a backup of your current Airflow metadata database
  3. Create a backup of your Airflow configuration (airflow.cfg) and any custom plugins
  4. Test the upgrade in a staging environment first
  5. Stop the Airflow webserver, scheduler, and worker services
  6. Upgrade Airflow using pip: pip install apache-airflow==2.2.0 or pip install apache-airflow>=2.2.0 for the latest 2.x release
  7. Run database migrations: airflow db upgrade
  8. Verify DAG parsing works: airflow dags list
Caveat Airflow 2.x has breaking changes from 1.10.x including renamed configuration options, changes to executor defaults, and deprecated APIs - review the upgrade guide

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

Fix this in Airflow Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,600.

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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-2021-45230 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