CVE-2021-39226

Grafana is an open source data visualization platform. In affected versions unauthenticated and authenticated users are able to view the snapshot with the lowest database key by accessing the literal paths: /dashboard/snapshot/:key, or /api/snapshots/:key. If the snapshot "public_mode" configuration setting is set to true (vs default of false), unauthenticated users are able to delete the snapshot with the lowest database key by accessing the literal path: /api/snapshots-delete/:deleteKey. Regardless of the snapshot "public_mode" setting, authenticated users are able to delete the snapshot with the lowest database key by accessing the literal paths: /api/snapshots/:key, or /api/snapshots-delete/:deleteKey. The combination of deletion and viewing enables a complete walk through all snapshot data while resulting in complete snapshot data loss. This issue has been resolved in versions 8.1.6 and 7.5.11. If for some reason you cannot upgrade you can use a reverse proxy or similar to block access to the literal paths: /api/snapshots/:key, /api/snapshots-delete/:deleteKey, /dashboard/snapshot/:key, and /api/snapshots/:key. They have no normal function and can be disabled without side effects.

CVSS: 9.8Criticalscored by the publisher (CNA)
Exploited in the wild: Yes, in CISA KEV since 25 Aug 2022CISA deadline for US federal agencies: 15 Sept 2022
EPSS: 99.9%chance of exploitation in the next 30 daystop 0.1% of scored CVEsFIRST score of 11 Nov 2026
Fix: Patch availablesee the advisories in the references
Published: 5 Oct 2021analysed here 12 Nov 2026

Do first. Apply updates per vendor instructions. (CISA's required action for this KEV entry)

Summary

Triage

Attack surface: Server-side
Exploitable: At runtime
Attack vector: network
Weaknesses: CWE-287 Improper Authentication
CWE-862 Missing Authorization
Can a WAF block it?: Partly. See why

The summary, impact and action text on this page are written by our AI analysis pipeline, or taken from the NVD description when a CVE was imported from NVD. They are not the vendor's wording: check them against the sources. A longer AI executive summary and technical analysis are generated for signed-in accounts on the Max plan.

Affected products

Product	Affected versions	Vendor says fixed in
grafana	>= 8.0.0 and < 8.1.6< 7.5.11Vendor says fixed in: not stated	Not stated by the vendor

As published in the CVE Program record. A version outside these ranges is not a statement that it is unaffected — vendors sometimes understate a range, and distribution-backported builds carry upstream numbers that do not reflect what was patched into them.

Products named in our analysis

grafana:grafana
fedoraproject:fedora

Fix and mitigation

WAF and other mitigations

Can a WAF block it? Partly. The attack involves accessing specific literal URL paths that have no normal function and can be blocked by a WAF without affecting legitimate users. A WAF rule can match requests to literal paths /api/snapshots/:key, /api/snapshots-delete/:deleteKey, /dashboard/snapshot/:key. No tracked WAF vendor has published a rule for this CVE yet, so you would write it yourself.

What a custom rule would match: requests to literal paths /api/snapshots/:key, /api/snapshots-delete/:deleteKey, /dashboard/snapshot/:key

Also consider: patch · custom WAF rule · add auth middleware

Based on an AI reading of the CVE description, and no vendor rule found yet. We check Cloudflare, AWS, Google Cloud Armor and Azure; for Akamai, Imperva, Fastly, F5, ask your vendor.

Remediation steps (AI-written)

Step-by-step remediation is generated for accounts on the Max plan, for CVEs that match a technology in their stack. Add this technology to your stack to see the fix checklist.

Exploitation evidence

CISA KEV catalog: Listed since 25 Aug 2022.
CISA due date: 15 Sept 2022, the remediation deadline for US federal agencies
CISA required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.
Public exploit code: Detection templates only, no public exploit found: 1 Nuclei template
CISA SSVC: exploitation active, automatable yes, technical impact totalAssessed by CISA 6 Feb 2025 (SSVC 2.0.3). Exploitation is none, poc (public proof of concept) or active.

Nuclei

Grafana Snapshot - Authentication Bypassdetection template, high

Listed so you can judge urgency, not as a recommendation to run anything. GitHub “proofs of concept” are unvetted: some are fake or carry malware. Exploit-DB marks the entries its staff verified.

Timeline

5 Oct 2021Published
25 Aug 2022Added to CISA KEV (exploited in the wild)323 days (about 11 months) later
15 Sept 2022CISA remediation due date (US federal agencies)21 days later
6 Feb 2025CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation active876 days (about 2 years) later
21 Oct 2025CVE record last updated257 days (about 9 months) later
12 Nov 2026Analysed by vulneraibility.com387 days (about 1 year) later

CVSS vector

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

Metric	Value	What it means
Attack vector	NetworkReachable over the internet or any routable network.	Reachable over the internet or any routable network.
Attack complexity	LowRepeatable attack, no special conditions.	Repeatable attack, no special conditions.
Privileges required	NoneThe attacker needs no prior access.	The attacker needs no prior access.
User interaction	NoneNo victim action needed.	No victim action needed.
Scope	UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.	Impact stays within the vulnerable component.
Confidentiality	HighTotal data disclosure possible.	Total data disclosure possible.
Integrity	HighComplete modification possible.	Complete modification possible.
Availability	HighFull outage possible.	Full outage possible.

Common questions

Is CVE-2021-39226 being exploited?

Yes. CVE-2021-39226 appears in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which means exploitation in the wild has been confirmed and reported. Treat it as active rather than theoretical, and patch it ahead of higher-scoring vulnerabilities that carry no exploitation evidence.

How severe is CVE-2021-39226?

CVE-2021-39226 is rated Critical with a CVSS score of 9.8. Severity describes how bad exploitation would be, not how likely it is: pair it with exploitation evidence before deciding what to patch first.

Is there a patch for CVE-2021-39226?

Yes. A fix has been recorded for CVE-2021-39226. The vendor advisory is the authority on the exact fixed version — apply it from there rather than from a summary.

What does CVE-2021-39226 affect?

CVE-2021-39226 affects grafana:grafana, fedoraproject:fedora. Confirm the exact affected versions against the vendor advisory before deciding you are exposed.

Exploitation status reflects CISA's KEV catalog as we last synced it. Check the catalog directly.

References

NVD CVE.org CVE Details Source

9 references in the CVE record, grouped by the tags the record gives them.

Advisories (2)

lists.fedoraproject.org /archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/E6ANHRDBXQT6TU
lists.fedoraproject.org /archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/DCKBFUSY6V4VU5

Where the data on this page comes from

CVE List (CVE.org): description, affected versions, references; CVE Terms of Use
NVD: CVSS and CPE data
CISA KEV catalog: exploitation, date added, due date
CISA Vulnrichment (ADP): SSVC decision points
FIRST EPSS: exploit probability and percentile
Nuclei templates: detection templates
OSV: advisory aliases and downstream package versions

Summary, impact and triage tags: written by our AI analysis pipeline from the sources above. Check them against the sources.

Similar CVEs

Get CVEs like this by email. Join the free digest: the CVEs we flag as major, all CVSS 8.0 or higher, in up to three emails a day (sent at 05:00, 11:00 and 15:00 UTC). Matching alerts to the products you run needs an account, and accounts are invite-only during the beta.