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GitLabApplication

CVE-2022-3411

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-02-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 15.6.7 / 15.7.6 or later.
See remediation →
71/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable 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
A lack of length validation in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions from 12.4 before 15.6.7, 15.7 before 15.7.6, and 15.8 before 15.8.1 allows an authenticated attacker to create a large Issue description via GraphQL which, when repeatedly requested, saturates CPU usage.

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

This is a denial-of-service vulnerability in GitLab's GraphQL API where the issue description field lacks length validation. An authenticated attacker can create an issue with an excessively large description, and when this description is repeatedly requested (e.g., via API calls), it saturates CPU usage through resource exhaustion.

MitigationUpgrade to GitLab 15.6.7, 15.7.6, or 15.8.1 or later. As a compensating control, implement rate limiting on GraphQL endpoints and monitor for unusual patterns of issue creation or retrieval.

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:>= 12.4, < 15.6.7>= 15.7, < 15.7.6>= 15.8, < 15.8.1

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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 installed GitLab version
    Run `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or check `/opt/gitlab/version` (Omnibus) or `cat /var/opt/gitlab/gitlab-rails/VERSION` (self-managed). Compare the version number to the affected ranges: 12.4 to <15.6.7, 15.7 to <15.7.6, or 15.8 to <15.8.1
    Affected if The installed version falls within any of the affected ranges listed in the CVE
  2. Confirm GraphQL API is exposed
    Verify that the GraphQL endpoint is accessible at your GitLab instance. Typically accessible at `/api/graphql` or `/graphql` depending on configuration. Check your web server or reverse proxy configuration for GraphQL route exposure
    Affected if GraphQL endpoint is publicly or internally accessible without proper restrictions
  3. Check for issues with unusually large descriptions
    Query the GitLab database for issues with description fields exceeding typical lengths. Example SQL: `SELECT id, project_id, description_length FROM issues WHERE LENGTH(description) > 10000;` Adjust the threshold based on your environment's normal usage
    Affected if Database contains issues with description lengths significantly larger than normal (e.g., >10KB)
  4. Review GraphQL endpoint rate limiting
    Check GitLab configuration files (e.g., `/etc/gitlab/gitlab.rb`) for rate limiting settings on GraphQL endpoints. Look for `gitlab_rails['graphql_api_rate_limit']` or similar rate limit configurations
    Affected if No rate limiting is configured on the GraphQL API endpoint

Your environment is affected if GitLab version is within the affected ranges AND the GraphQL API is accessible without rate limiting protections.

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 15.6.7 / 15.7.6 / 15.8.1 or later
Fixed in 15.6.715.7.615.8.1
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to GitLab 15.6.7, 15.7.6, or 15.8.1 or later. As a compensating control, implement rate limiting on GraphQL endpoints and monitor for unusual patterns of issue creation or retrieval.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to GitLab 15.8.1 or later (recommended: latest stable 15.x release such as 15.11.x)

  1. 1. Back up your GitLab instance database and configuration files.
  2. 2. Schedule a maintenance window for the upgrade.
  3. 3. For Debian/Ubuntu: Run `sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install gitlab-ce` (or `gitlab-ee` for Enterprise Edition).
  4. 4. For RHEL/CentOS: Run `sudo yum install gitlab-ce` (or `gitlab-ee`).
  5. 5. Run `sudo gitlab-ctl reconfigure` to apply configuration changes.
  6. 6. Verify the upgrade completed successfully by checking the GitLab version with `sudo gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info`.
  7. 7. Test that issue creation via GraphQL API functions correctly with appropriate length constraints.
Caveat Review GitLab 15.8-15.11 release notes for any deprecations or breaking changes relevant to your instance configuration

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

Fix this in GitLab Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,130
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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-2022-3411 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