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GitLabApplication

CVE-2026-4524

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-05-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 18.9.7 / 18.10.6 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
GitLab has remediated an issue in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions from 18.9.1 before 18.9.7, 18.10 before 18.10.6, and 18.11 before 18.11.3 that could have allowed an authenticated user to access confidential issue content in public projects without proper authorization due to improper authorization checks.

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

This is an improper authorization vulnerability in GitLab CE/EE where authenticated users could access confidential issue content in public projects without proper authorization. The vulnerability stems from insufficient authorization checks that should restrict access to confidential issues, allowing any authenticated user to view restricted content in otherwise public projects.

MitigationUpgrade GitLab to version 18.9.7, 18.10.6, or 18.11.3 or later to receive the security patch. Organizations should also audit access logs for unauthorized access to confidential issues in public projects.

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:>= 18.9.1, < 18.9.7>= 18.10.0, < 18.10.6>= 18.11.0, < 18.11.3

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
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/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 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. Alternatively, check /opt/gitlab/embedded/service/gitlab-rails/VERSION
    Affected if Version falls within 18.9.1 to 18.9.6, 18.10.0 to 18.10.5, or 18.11.0 to 18.11.2
  2. Identify public projects with confidential issues
    Navigate to GitLab admin panel > Projects > filter by Visibility set to Public, then for each public project go to Issues > List and look for issues with the 'confidential' label or lock icon
    Affected if Any public project contains confidential issues and the GitLab version is affected
  3. Verify authorization on confidential issues
    As an authenticated user (not project member), attempt to access a confidential issue in a public project by navigating directly to the issue URL or searching for it
    Affected if You can view confidential issue content without being a project member with sufficient permissions

You are affected if your GitLab version is 18.9.1-18.9.6, 18.10.0-18.10.5, or 18.11.0-18.11.2 AND you have public projects containing confidential issues that could be accessed by any authenticated user.

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 18.9.7 / 18.10.6 / 18.11.3 or later
Fixed in 18.9.718.10.618.11.3
Interim mitigation

Upgrade GitLab to version 18.9.7, 18.10.6, or 18.11.3 or later to receive the security patch. Organizations should also audit access logs for unauthorized access to confidential issues in public projects.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to GitLab 18.9.7, 18.10.6, or 18.11.3 (whichever is the next stable release above your current version)

  1. 1. Identify current GitLab version by running `gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info` or checking the Admin Area > Settings > General page.
  2. 2. Based on your current version, plan upgrade to the next stable fixed release: 18.9.7 (if on 18.9.1-18.9.6), 18.10.6 (if on 18.10.0-18.10.5), or 18.11.3 (if on 18.11.0-18.11.2).
  3. 3. Review GitLab upgrade documentation for your current version to target version to ensure compatibility.
  4. 4. Create a full backup of the GitLab instance using `gitlab-backup-create` or the omnibus backup command.
  5. 5. Stop GitLab services using `gitlab-ctl stop` (for omnibus) or equivalent for your deployment.
  6. 6. Update GitLab packages/repositories to the target fixed version.
  7. 7. Run `gitlab-ctl reconfigure` (for omnibus) or complete the upgrade process for your deployment method.
  8. 8. Verify the upgrade was successful and GitLab services are running properly.
Caveat Review GitLab release notes for version-specific breaking changes between your current and target version before upgrading

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

Fix this in GitLab Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,490
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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-2026-4524 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