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GitLabApplication

CVE-2018-17452

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-04-15
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 11.1.7 / 11.2.4 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
An issue was discovered in GitLab Community and Enterprise Edition before 11.1.7, 11.2.x before 11.2.4, and 11.3.x before 11.3.1. There is Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF) via a loopback address to the validate_localhost function in url_blocker.rb.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

GitLab contains an SSRF vulnerability in the url_blocker.rb validation logic. The validate_localhost function improperly allows requests to loopback addresses (127.0.0.1/localhost), enabling attackers to make the server probe internal services that should be inaccessible from external networks.

MitigationUpgrade GitLab to version 11.1.7, 11.2.4, 11.3.1 or later to patch the vulnerable url_blocker.rb validation function.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
GitLabApplication
Affected:< 11.1.7>= 11.2.0, < 11.2.4= 11.3.0

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify GitLab version
    Run `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or check `/opt/gitlab/version` to obtain the installed GitLab version number
    Affected if The installed version falls into any of these ranges: < 11.1.7, >= 11.2.0 and < 11.2.4, or exactly 11.3.0
  2. Locate url_blocker.rb validation file
    Find the url_blocker.rb file in the GitLab installation directory, typically under `lib/gitlab/url_blocker.rb`, and examine the validate_localhost function
    Affected if The validate_localhost function does not properly block 127.0.0.1 or localhost addresses (the function exists but contains the vulnerability)
  3. Determine if outbound HTTP features are in use
    Check if webhooks, integrations, or external service connections are configured by reviewing project settings or checking the database tables for webhook definitions in the GitLab database
    Affected if Webhooks or integrations that trigger outbound HTTP requests to user-supplied URLs are enabled or configured on the instance

You are affected if your GitLab version is 11.1.0-11.1.6, 11.2.0-11.2.3, or 11.3.0 AND your instance uses features that make outbound HTTP requests to user-provided URLs such as webhooks or integrations.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 11.1.7 / 11.2.4 or later
Fixed in 11.1.711.2.4
Interim mitigation

Upgrade GitLab to version 11.1.7, 11.2.4, 11.3.1 or later to patch the vulnerable url_blocker.rb validation function.

Recommended fix High confidence

11.1.7 (for versions <11.2.0), 11.2.4 (for versions 11.2.0-11.2.3), or 11.3.1 (for version 11.3.0)

  1. Identify your current GitLab version by checking the GitLab admin panel or running `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info`
  2. Determine the appropriate target version based on your current version: if <11.2.0 upgrade to 11.1.7; if >=11.2.0 and <11.2.4 upgrade to 11.2.4; if 11.3.0 upgrade to 11.3.1
  3. Back up your GitLab instance using `gitlab-backup-create` or the omnibus backup tool
  4. Stop GitLab services with `sudo gitlab-ctl stop`
  5. Update GitLab using your package manager (e.g., `sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install gitlab-ce` for Debian/Ubuntu or `sudo yum install gitlab-ce` for RHEL/CentOS)
  6. Reconfigure GitLab with `sudo gitlab-ctl reconfigure`
  7. Restart GitLab services with `sudo gitlab-ctl start`
  8. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the version in the admin panel
Caveat Review GitLab upgrade guides for any between-version migration notes; standard upgrade risks apply (test in staging first)

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in GitLab Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,420
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An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,272.

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2018-17452 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data