# CVE-2021-21438: FAQ articles are shown to users without permission

> Agents can view linked FAQ articles without proper permissions, leading to unauthorized data disclosure in OTRS systems.

- **Severity:** Low 3.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 22 Mar 2021
- **Updated:** 17 Sep 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-vxww-8wxj-j946

## What is CVE-2021-21438?

CVE-2021-21438 is a low-severity missing authorization vulnerability in Otrs Otrs, published on 22 Mar 2021. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

Agents are able to see linked FAQ articles without permissions (defined in FAQ Category). This issue affects: FAQ version 6.0.29 and prior versions, OTRS version 7.0.24 and prior versions.

Weakness: CWE-276 (Incorrect Default Permissions), CWE-264

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-21438?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Otrs Faq, Otrs Otrs.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-21438?

No fix has been published for CVE-2021-21438 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2021-21438 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-21438 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Otrs Otrs

- [CVE-2016-5843](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-5843/): SQL injection in n/a (critical 9.4)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-21438 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-21438 is a low-severity missing authorization vulnerability in Otrs Otrs, published on 22 Mar 2021. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-21438 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Otrs Otrs. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-21438/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-21438/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-21438
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-21438
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-21438

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-21438/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.