What is CVE-2021-22251?

CVE-2021-22251 is a medium-severity vulnerability in GitLab, classified under Incorrect Authorization. CVSS score: 4.3/10. Published 2021-08-23.

How severe is CVE-2021-22251?

Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 4.3 out of 10.

Auth bypass in GitLab

CVE-2021-22251

Improper validation of invited users' email address in GitLab EE affecting all versions since 12.2 allowed projects to add members with email address domain that should be blocked by group settings

Vulnerability class: Broken Access Control

Published 2021-08-23 · last modified 2026-06-17.

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 4.3 (Medium). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.008 (55.5th percentile), scored 2026-09-29.

Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 55th percentile — 55.5% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.008 · newest: 0.008 · change: 0.000

Affected products

GitLab — versions >=12.2, <13.12.9, >=14.0, <14.0.7, >=14.1, <14.1.2

Weakness classification (CWE)

CWE-863 — Incorrect Authorization

References

gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/14004 (Exploit, Issue Tracking, Vendor Advisory)
hackerone.com/reports/679567 (Permissions Required, Third Party Advisory)
gitlab.com/gitlab-org/cves/-/blob/master/2021/CVE-2021-22251.json (Vendor Advisory)

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2021-22251?: CVE-2021-22251 is a medium-severity vulnerability in GitLab, classified under Incorrect Authorization. CVSS score: 4.3/10. Published 2021-08-23.
How severe is CVE-2021-22251?: Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 4.3 out of 10.