GitLabApplication
CVE-2023-5207
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 · uneditedA vulnerability was discovered in GitLab CE and EE affecting all versions starting 16.0 prior to 16.2.8, 16.3 prior to 16.3.5, and 16.4 prior to 16.4.1. An authenticated attacker could perform arbitrary pipeline execution under the context of another user.
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 confidenceAn authenticated attacker can execute arbitrary CI/CD pipelines under the context of another GitLab user, enabling privilege escalation and unauthorized access to resources accessible via pipeline execution.
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
>= 16.0.0, < 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
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Identify installed GitLab versionRun 'gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info' or access the GitLab admin dashboard to retrieve the exact version numberAffected if Version is 16.0.0 to 16.2.7, 16.3.0 to 16.3.4, or exactly 16.4.0
-
Confirm CI/CD pipeline functionality is activeVerify that the GitLab instance has CI/CD pipelines enabled and projects can create and run pipeline jobsAffected if CI/CD pipelines are enabled and the instance runs an affected version listed above
-
Verify authentication is required for pipeline executionConfirm that pipeline execution requires authenticated user access rather than being completely disabledAffected if Users can authenticate and trigger pipeline jobs, and the instance runs an affected version
The environment is affected if the installed GitLab version falls within 16.0.0-16.2.7, 16.3.0-16.3.4, or 16.4.0 and authenticated users have the ability to execute CI/CD pipelines.
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 to patch the arbitrary pipeline execution vulnerability.
16.2.8+ / 16.3.5+ / 16.4.1+ (preferably latest 16.x stable)
- Identify the currently installed GitLab version using `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or checking the GitLab admin area
- Determine which upgrade path applies based on your current version (16.0.x-16.2.x, 16.3.x, or 16.4.0)
- For major version upgrades, follow GitLab's official upgrade path documentation to ensure intermediate versions are supported
- Plan the upgrade following GitLab's standard upgrade procedure: backup the database and repositories, stop GitLab services, run package installer for the target version
- Upgrade to GitLab 16.2.8 or later in the 16.2 branch, OR 16.3.5 or later in the 16.3 branch, OR 16.4.1 or later in the 16.4 branch
- After upgrade, verify the installation using `gitlab-rake gitlab:check` and confirm the new version is running
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
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,656.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-5207 — 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-2023-5207 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
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.
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