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Scrape Timestamp (UTC): 2026-02-04 15:48:54.946
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CISA warns of five-year-old GitLab flaw exploited in attacks. The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) ordered government agencies to patch their systems against a five-year-old GitLab vulnerability that is actively being exploited in attacks. GitLab patched this server-side request forgery (SSRF) flaw (tracked as CVE-2021-39935) in December 2021, saying it could allow unauthenticated attackers with no privileges to access the CI Lint API, which is used to simulate pipelines and validate CI/CD configurations. "When user registration is limited, external users that aren't developers shouldn't have access to the CI Lint API," the company said at the time. "An issue has been discovered in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions starting from 10.5 before 14.3.6, all versions starting from 14.4 before 14.4.4, all versions starting from 14.5 before 14.5.2. Unauthorized external users could perform Server Side Requests via the CI Lint API." On Tuesday, CISA added the flaw to its list of vulnerabilities exploited in the wild and ordered Federal Civilian Executive Branch (FCEB) agencies to patch their systems within three weeks, by February 24, 2026, as mandated by Binding Operational Directive (BOD) 22-01. While BOD 22-01 targets only federal agencies, CISA has urged all organizations, including those in the private sector, to prioritize securing their devices against ongoing CVE-2021-39935 attacks. "These types of vulnerabilities are frequent attack vectors for malicious cyber actors and pose significant risks to the federal enterprise," CISA warned. "Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable." Shodan is currently tracking over 49,000 devices with a GitLab fingerprint exposed online, the vast majority of which are from China, and nearly 27,000 are using the default port 443. GitLab says its DevSecOps platform has more than 30 million registered users and is used by over 50% of Fortune 100 organizations, including high-profile companies such as Nvidia, Airbus, Goldman Sachs, T-Mobile, and Lockheed Martin. Yesterday, CISA also flagged a critical SolarWinds Web Help Desk vulnerability as actively exploited and ordered government agencies to patch systems within three days. The future of IT infrastructure is here Modern IT infrastructure moves faster than manual workflows can handle. In this new Tines guide, learn how your team can reduce hidden manual delays, improve reliability through automated response, and build and scale intelligent workflows on top of tools you already use.
Daily Brief Summary
CISA has mandated federal agencies to patch a five-year-old GitLab vulnerability (CVE-2021-39935) by February 24, 2026, due to active exploitation in the wild.
The vulnerability allows unauthorized access to the CI Lint API, posing significant risks to systems by enabling server-side request forgery (SSRF) attacks.
Affected GitLab versions include all from 10.5 before 14.3.6, 14.4 before 14.4.4, and 14.5 before 14.5.2, requiring immediate updates to mitigate threats.
CISA's directive, BOD 22-01, applies to federal agencies but recommends all organizations, including private sector entities, to prioritize patching efforts.
Shodan reports over 49,000 devices with a GitLab fingerprint online, predominantly in China, highlighting the widespread exposure and potential attack surface.
GitLab's platform, used by over 30 million users and 50% of Fortune 100 companies, underscores the critical need for prompt action to secure infrastructure.
Organizations are advised to apply vendor-recommended mitigations or discontinue use of vulnerable products if patches are unavailable to prevent exploitation.