GitLabApplication
CVE-2018-17453
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 · uneditedAn 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. Attackers may have been able to obtain sensitive access-token data from Sentry logs via the GRPC::Unknown exception.
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 · moderate confidenceGitLab versions before 11.1.7, 11.2.x before 11.2.4, and 11.3.x before 11.3.1 improperly handle GRPC::Unknown exceptions, causing sensitive access tokens to be logged to Sentry error tracking. Attackers with access to Sentry logs could retrieve these tokens and gain unauthorized authentication.
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
< 11.1.7>= 11.2.0, < 11.2.4= 11.3.0CVSS 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
- Low
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed GitLab versionRun `sudo gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or check /opt/gitlab/embedded/service/gitlab-rails/VERSION to obtain the exact GitLab version numberAffected if The version is lower than 11.1.7, between 11.2.0 and 11.2.3 inclusive, or exactly 11.3.0
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Verify Sentry integration is activeCheck GitLab configuration files (gitlab.yml or gitlab.rb) for Sentry DSN settings, or review the GitLab admin area under Integrations to confirm Sentry error tracking is enabledAffected if Sentry integration is configured and active, creating the condition where tokens could be exposed
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Inspect Sentry project for token exposureAccess the Sentry dashboard or API for the project linked to this GitLab instance and search log entries containing terms like 'token', 'access_token', 'private_token', or patterns resembling alphanumeric tokens in error tracesAffected if Sentry logs contain any access tokens (in any format) in error messages or stack traces, indicating the vulnerability is present and exploitable
You are affected if your GitLab version falls within the vulnerable ranges AND Sentry is integrated, with confirmed access tokens appearing in Sentry logs providing definitive evidence of the flaw.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 · scoped11.1.711.2.4
Upgrade GitLab to version 11.1.7, 11.2.4, 11.3.1 or later to remediate the improper exception handling that exposes access tokens in Sentry logs.
GitLab 11.3.1 or later (minimum fixed versions: 11.1.7, 11.2.4, or 11.3.1)
- Back up your GitLab instance database and configuration
- Stop GitLab services
- Update GitLab to version 11.3.1 or later using your package manager or upgrade method
- Run 'gitlab-ctl reconfigure' after the upgrade
- Verify the upgrade was successful by checking GitLab is operational
- Review Sentry logs to ensure no sensitive tokens were compromised prior to the upgrade
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
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,272.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-17453 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2018-17453 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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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.
- 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