dbcve.org
GitLabApplication

CVE-2023-4018

MEDIUM · 5.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-09-01
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 16.2.5 or later.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 has been discovered in GitLab affecting all versions starting from 16.2 before 16.2.5, all versions starting from 16.3 before 16.3.1. Due to improper permission validation it was possible to create model experiments in public projects.

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 versions 16.2 through 16.2.5 and 16.3 through 16.3.1 contain an improper permission validation vulnerability in the model experiments feature. Due to inadequate access control checks, authenticated users could create model experiments in public projects even without proper authorization, potentially allowing unauthorized modification of project resources.

MitigationUpgrade GitLab to version 16.2.5 or 16.3.1 or later to resolve the improper permission validation issue.

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:>= 16.2, < 16.2.5= 16.3.0

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
None
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

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

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

  1. Check installed GitLab version
    Navigate to the GitLab admin area (Admin Dashboard > Settings > General) or use the command `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` to display version information. Look for the exact version number in the format GitLab EE XX.X.X or GitLab CE XX.X.X.
    Affected if Version is 16.2.0 through 16.2.4, or exactly 16.3.0, indicating the patch has not been applied.
  2. Verify model experiments feature availability
    Check if the Machine Learning (ML) / Model Experiments feature is enabled. In GitLab, go to Admin Area > Settings > Machine Learning (or check via API at /api/v4/application/settings). Alternatively, inspect whether any project has the ML experiment tracking feature accessible under Project > MLflow or similar ML-related sections.
    Affected if The model experiments feature is enabled and accessible to authenticated users in the GitLab instance.
  3. Identify public projects with ML experiments
    Review projects set to 'Public' visibility that may have model experiments or MLflow tracking enabled. Use GitLab API: `GET /projects?membership=true&visibility=public` or check project settings under Settings > Visibility to identify public projects.
    Affected if Public projects exist on the GitLab instance, particularly those with ML/experiments functionality exposed.
  4. Confirm authenticated user access to public projects
    Test with a low-privilege authenticated user account (non-admin) on a public project. Attempt to access or create a model experiment (Project > ML > Experiments or similar endpoint). Verify if an unauthorized user can interact with the model experiments feature.
    Affected if Authenticated users without explicit project authorization can access or create model experiments in public projects.

You are affected if your GitLab version is 16.2.0-16.2.4 or 16.3.0, the model experiments feature is enabled, and public projects exist where unauthorized users could create or modify experiments.

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 16.2.5 or later
Fixed in 16.2.5
Interim mitigation

Upgrade GitLab to version 16.2.5 or 16.3.1 or later to resolve the improper permission validation issue.

Recommended fix High confidence

GitLab 16.2.5 or 16.3.1 (whichever corresponds to your current branch)

  1. 1. Identify the current GitLab installation version using the Rails console (sudo gitlab-rails console) or the admin area UI.
  2. 2. For GitLab 16.2.x (versions >= 16.2 and < 16.2.5): Upgrade to GitLab 16.2.5 or later.
  3. 3. For GitLab 16.3.0: Upgrade to GitLab 16.3.1 or later.
  4. 4. After upgrade, verify the version in Admin Area > Overview > Dashboard to confirm the patch was applied.
  5. 5. Test that permission controls work correctly by attempting to create a model experiment in a public project as a non-member user (should be denied).

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
Get the upgrade done

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 locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-4018 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2023-4018 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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