How severe is CVE-2021-22869?

CVE-2021-22869 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2021-22869 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (67th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2021-22869?

CVE-2021-22869 affects Github Enterprise Server. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2021-22869?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

When was CVE-2021-22869 published?

CVE-2021-22869 was published on 2021-09-24 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2021-22869

CVE-2021-22869 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Github Enterprise Server with a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-287.

Key facts

Severity: Critical (CVSS 3.x base score 9.8)
CVSS v2: 7.5
EPSS exploit prediction: 1% (67th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-287
Affected product: Github Enterprise Server
Published: 2021-09-24
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

An improper access control vulnerability in GitHub Enterprise Server allowed a workflow job to execute in a self-hosted runner group it should not have had access to. This affects customers using self-hosted runner groups for access control. A repository with access to one enterprise runner group could access all of the enterprise runner groups within the organization because of improper authentication checks during the request. This could cause code to be run unintentionally by the incorrect runner group. This vulnerability affected GitHub Enterprise Server versions from 3.0.0 to 3.0.15 and 3.1.0 to 3.1.7 and was fixed in 3.0.16 and 3.1.8 releases.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2021-22869?: An improper access control vulnerability in GitHub Enterprise Server allowed a workflow job to execute in a self-hosted runner group it should not have had access to. This affects customers using self-hosted runner groups for access control. A repository with access to one enterprise runner group could access all of the enterprise runner groups within the organization because of improper authentication checks during the request. This could cause code to be run unintentionally by the incorrect runner group. This vulnerability affected GitHub Enterprise Server versions from 3.0.0 to 3.0.15 and 3.1.0 to 3.1.7 and was fixed in 3.0.16 and 3.1.8 releases.
How severe is CVE-2021-22869?: CVE-2021-22869 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2021-22869 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (67th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2021-22869?: CVE-2021-22869 affects Github Enterprise Server. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2021-22869?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2021-22869 published?: CVE-2021-22869 was published on 2021-09-24 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:github:enterprise_server:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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