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GitLabApplication

CVE-2025-8014

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-09-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 18.2.7 / 18.3.3 or later.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
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
Denial of Service issue in GraphQL endpoints in Gitlab EE/CE affecting all versions from 11.10 prior to 18.2.7, 18.3 prior to 18.3.3, and 18.4 prior to 18.4.1 allows unauthenticated users to potentially bypass query complexity limits leading to resource exhaustion and service disruption.

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 GraphQL endpoints contain a vulnerability allowing unauthenticated users to bypass query complexity limits. Attackers can send specially crafted GraphQL queries that bypass existing protections, leading to excessive resource consumption and service disruption.

MitigationUpgrade GitLab to version 18.2.7, 18.3.3, or 18.4.1 or later to patch the vulnerability. Alternatively, consider restricting unauthenticated access to GraphQL endpoints as a temporary measure.

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:>= 11.10.0, < 18.2.7>= 18.3.0, < 18.3.3= 18.4.0

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
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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. Determine installed GitLab version
    Run `sudo gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or check the GitLab admin panel under 'Help' > 'Version' to find the exact version number.
    Affected if The version falls within 11.10.0 to 18.2.6, 18.3.0 to 18.3.2, or equals 18.4.0.
  2. Confirm GraphQL endpoint is exposed to unauthenticated users
    Attempt to access the GraphQL endpoint at `/api/graphql` without providing any authentication credentials (no cookies, tokens, or session).
    Affected if The GraphQL endpoint returns a valid response (not a 401 or redirect to login) for unauthenticated requests.
  3. Check if anonymous access is enabled in GitLab settings
    Navigate to Admin Area > Settings > General > Visibility and access controls, or check the `allow_single_email` or `graphql_api_access` settings via the Rails console with `Gitlab::CurrentSettings.current_application_settings`
    Affected if Anonymous or unauthenticated users have permission to access the GraphQL API.
  4. Verify query complexity limits are being enforced
    Send a deliberately complex nested GraphQL query to the endpoint without auth and observe if it completes without hitting complexity restrictions, or check audit logs for blocked queries.
    Affected if Complex queries execute without being rejected or throttled by complexity analysis.

You are affected if your GitLab version is 11.10.0 through 18.2.6, 18.3.0 through 18.3.2, or 18.4.0 AND the GraphQL endpoint is accessible to unauthenticated users.

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 18.2.7 / 18.3.3 or later
Fixed in 18.2.718.3.3
Interim mitigation

Upgrade GitLab to version 18.2.7, 18.3.3, or 18.4.1 or later to patch the vulnerability. Alternatively, consider restricting unauthenticated access to GraphQL endpoints as a temporary measure.

Recommended fix High confidence

18.2.7, 18.3.3, or 18.4.1 (depending on which version branch you are on)

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed GitLab version using `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or checking the GitLab admin area
  2. 2. Determine the appropriate target version based on current installation: if < 18.2.7 upgrade to 18.2.7; if >= 18.3.0 and < 18.3.3 upgrade to 18.3.3; if == 18.4.0 upgrade to 18.4.1
  3. 3. Create a full backup of the GitLab instance using `gitlab-backup-create`
  4. 4. Review GitLab upgrade documentation for your deployment method (omnibus, source, etc.)
  5. 5. Execute the upgrade following the official upgrade path documentation, ensuring you meet any intermediate version requirements
  6. 6. After upgrade, verify the GraphQL endpoint no longer allows query complexity bypass by confirming complexity analysis is enforced
  7. 7. Monitor system resources to confirm the DoS vector is mitigated
Caveat Major version upgrades may require database migrations; review release notes for any breaking changes between your current version and target 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
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
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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-2025-8014 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