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GitLabApplication

CVE-2023-6159

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-01-26
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 16.6.6 / 16.7.4 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
An issue has been discovered in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions from 12.7 prior to 16.6.6, 16.7 prior to 16.7.4, and 16.8 prior to 16.8.1 It was possible for an attacker to trigger a Regular Expression Denial of Service via a `Cargo.toml` containing maliciously crafted input.

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

A Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) vulnerability exists in GitLab CE/EE's parsing of Cargo.toml files (Rust package manifests). When GitLab processes a maliciously crafted Cargo.toml file containing a specially crafted regular expression, it can cause excessive CPU consumption leading to service degradation or unavailability. The attack requires no authentication or special privileges.

MitigationUpgrade GitLab to version 16.6.6, 16.7.4, 16.8.1 or later. As a workaround, consider restricting or validating uploaded Cargo.toml files through GitLab's upload controls or implementing rate limiting on repository parsing operations.

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:>= 12.7.0, < 16.6.6>= 16.7.0, < 16.7.4= 16.8.0

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
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. Check installed GitLab version
    Run `sudo gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or inspect /opt/gitlab/version file. Alternatively, check the GitLab Admin Area under Help > Version or the /-/version page.
    Affected if The installed version falls within any of these ranges: >= 12.7.0 and < 16.6.6, OR >= 16.7.0 and < 16.7.4, OR equals 16.8.0
  2. Determine if GitLab handles Rust repositories
    Review whether your GitLab instance hosts or imports any Rust projects that may contain Cargo.toml files. Check for projects with .rs source files and their associated Cargo.toml manifests.
    Affected if GitLab processes, imports, or mirrors any repository containing Cargo.toml files from external or untrusted sources
  3. Verify if unauthenticated file access or import features are enabled
    Check GitLab project visibility settings and whether public or internal projects can be accessed without authentication. Also verify if repository import/mirror from unauthenticated sources is permitted.
    Affected if Unauthenticated users can push to, import, or trigger parsing of repositories containing Cargo.toml files on the affected GitLab instance

The instance is affected if the installed GitLab version matches any of the vulnerable version ranges AND the instance processes Rust repositories or Cargo.toml files from any source, including through unauthenticated channels.

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 16.6.6 / 16.7.4 or later
Fixed in 16.6.616.7.4
Interim mitigation

Upgrade GitLab to version 16.6.6, 16.7.4, 16.8.1 or later. As a workaround, consider restricting or validating uploaded Cargo.toml files through GitLab's upload controls or implementing rate limiting on repository parsing operations.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to GitLab 16.6.6 (or latest 16.6.x), 16.7.4 (or latest 16.7.x), or 16.8.1 (or latest 16.8.x) depending on your current version

  1. Identify your current GitLab version by checking the GitLab administration interface or running `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info`
  2. Determine the appropriate upgrade path based on your current version: if on 12.7.x through 16.5.x, target 16.6.6 or later; if on 16.7.x, target 16.7.4 or later; if on 16.8.0, target 16.8.1 or later
  3. Before upgrading, review the GitLab upgrade documentation and ensure your system meets the requirements for the target version
  4. Create a full backup of your GitLab instance using `gitlab-backup-create` or the Omnibus backup tool
  5. Schedule a maintenance window as upgrades may require downtime
  6. For Omnibus installations, run `apt-get update && apt-get install gitlab-ce` (or `gitlab-ee`) to upgrade to the target version
  7. For source installations, follow the GitLab upgrade guides for your deployment method
  8. After upgrade, verify the GitLab instance is operational and check that the version matches the target
Caveat Review GitLab's release notes for your target version for any breaking changes or required migration steps; major version jumps may have significant changes

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

Fix this in GitLab Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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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-2023-6159 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