GitLabApplication
CVE-2023-0989
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 information disclosure issue in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions starting from 13.11 prior to 16.2.8, 16.3 prior to 16.3.5, and 16.4 prior to 16.4.1 allows an attacker to extract non-protected CI/CD variables by tricking a user to visit a fork with a malicious CI/CD configuration.
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 confidenceThis is an information disclosure vulnerability in GitLab CE/EE that allows attackers to extract non-protected CI/CD variables by tricking users into visiting a fork containing malicious CI/CD configuration. The attack exploits the trust relationship between users and forked repositories, accessing sensitive variable data that should not be exposed.
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
>= 13.11, < 16.2.8>= 16.3.0, < 16.3.5= 16.4.0CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/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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Check your GitLab versionAccess the GitLab admin area or run `gitlab-rake gitlab:version` to determine the installed GitLab versionAffected if The installed version falls within the affected ranges: >= 13.11 and < 16.2.8, OR >= 16.3.0 and < 16.3.5, OR exactly 16.4.0
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Identify projects with CI/CD variablesNavigate to each project Settings > CI/CD > Variables section, or use the API to list variables across projectsAffected if Any project in your GitLab instance defines CI/CD variables
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Check variable protection statusIn each project's CI/CD Variables settings, examine the 'Protect variable' checkbox or protected column for each variableAffected if Any CI/CD variable exists with the protected flag disabled or unchecked
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Review fork relationshipsCheck if your projects have been forked, or if your users have visited external forks, by reviewing project forks API or web interfaceAffected if Users have created forks of your projects or have interacted with forks from untrusted sources
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Audit CI/CD pipeline triggersReview pipeline logs and webhooks for pipeline runs triggered from fork merge requests, looking for unauthorized access to variable valuesAffected if Pipelines have run on merge requests from forks that accessed CI/CD variable contents
You are affected if your GitLab version is vulnerable AND you have non-protected CI/CD variables defined in any project that could be accessed through fork interactions.
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 · scoped16.2.816.3.5
Upgrade GitLab to version 16.2.8, 16.3.5, 16.4.1 or later. Additionally, review CI/CD variable configurations to ensure only necessary variables are defined and consider marking sensitive variables as protected.
GitLab 16.4.1 or later (or 16.2.8+/16.3.5+ depending on your major version branch)
- 1. Backup your GitLab instance database and repositories before upgrading
- 2. Check current GitLab version by navigating to Admin Area > Settings > Metrics and profiling > Version
- 3. For versions 13.11-16.2.x: upgrade to GitLab 16.2.8 or later
- 4. For versions 16.3.0-16.3.x: upgrade to GitLab 16.3.5 or later
- 5. For version 16.4.0: upgrade to GitLab 16.4.1 or later
- 6. Alternatively, upgrade directly to the latest 16.x stable release (16.4.1 or higher) which contains all fixes
- 7. After upgrade, verify the version at Admin Area > Settings > Metrics and profiling > Version
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in GitLab
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,600.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-0989 — 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-2023-0989 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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- 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