CVE-2021-39226: Grafana Authentication Bypass Vulnerability
- Is it exploited?
Yes. CISA added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 25 Aug 2022, 324 days after the CVE record was published.
- How likely is exploitation in the next 30 days?
- 99.9%
EPSS score, percentile 100 of all scored records
- How severe?
- 9.8 Critical
CVSS v3.1 base score, given by the CNA
- What should I do?
CISA deadline 15 Sep 2022. Apply updates per vendor instructions.
- Which versions are affected?
Affected
- >= 8.0.0, < 8.1.6
- < 7.5.11
Source: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, 2026.10.28, as of 28 Oct 2026; FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS), v2026.06.15, as of 28 Oct 2026; CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.
What to do
Required action, set by CISA
Apply updates per vendor instructions.
CISA due date for this action: 15 September 2022.
Advisories and patches
Linked from CISA's catalog entry
- https://grafana.com/blog/2021/10/05/grafana-7.5.11-and-8.1.6-released-with-critical-security-fix/
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-39226
Affected products and versions
As listed in the CVE record.
| Status | Versions |
|---|---|
| Affected | >= 8.0.0, < 8.1.6 |
| Affected | < 7.5.11 |
Source: CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.
About this vulnerability
Grafana contains an authentication bypass vulnerability that allows authenticated and unauthenticated users to view and delete all snapshot data, potentially resulting in complete snapshot data loss.
Summary: CISA's KEV catalog, as of 28 Oct 2026.
- CISA added CVE-2021-39226 to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog on 25 Aug 2022.
- CISA's ransomware flag for this entry is "Unknown": no evidence of ransomware use in the catalog, which is not proof of none.
- The due date CISA sets for the required action is 15 Sep 2022.
- The CVE record was published on 5 Oct 2021, 324 days before it was added to KEV.
- The CVE record carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (Critical), given by its CNA.
- FIRST's EPSS model puts the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days at 99.9% (percentile 100), as of 28 Oct 2026.
- CISA's SSVC assessment in the CVE record: exploitation active, automatable yes, technical impact total.
Source: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, 2026.10.28, as of 28 Oct 2026; CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026; FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS), v2026.06.15, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.
Description
Snapshot authentication bypass in grafana
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.
Source: CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.
Weakness
- CWE-287: Improper Authentication
CWE and CAPEC are maintained by MITRE; the entries are those named in the CVE record and the KEV entry.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 5 Oct 2021 | CVE record published |
| 25 Aug 2022 | Added to CISA KEV |
| 15 Sep 2022 | CISA due date for the required action |
| 21 Oct 2025 | CVE record last updated |
References
- github.com
- github.com
- grafana.com
- grafana.com
- [oss-security] 20211005 CVE-2021-39226 Grafana snapshot authentication bypass
- security.netapp.com
More exploited Grafana vulnerabilities
- CVE-2021-43798: Grafana Path Traversal Vulnerability