CVE-2018-14364 in Community Edition
Summary
by MITRE
GitLab Community and Enterprise Edition before 10.7.7, 10.8.x before 10.8.6, and 11.x before 11.0.4 allows Directory Traversal with write access and resultant remote code execution via the GitLab projects import component.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/18/2023
This vulnerability exists in GitLab Community and Enterprise Edition versions prior to 10.7.7, 10.8.x prior to 10.8.6, and 11.x prior to 11.0.4, representing a critical directory traversal flaw that enables authenticated users with write access to execute arbitrary code on the target system. The vulnerability specifically affects the GitLab projects import component, which processes project data from external sources including zip archives. The flaw stems from insufficient input validation and path sanitization within the import functionality, allowing maliciously crafted archive files to manipulate file paths during extraction processes. This directory traversal vulnerability is classified as CWE-22 according to the Common Weakness Enumeration catalog, which identifies weaknesses in input validation that can lead to path traversal attacks.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability exploits the lack of proper path validation when extracting files from imported project archives. When a user with write permissions imports a project, the system processes the archive content without adequately sanitizing file paths, particularly those containing directory traversal sequences such as ../ or ..\.. The vulnerable code does not properly validate or canonicalize file paths before writing extracted files to disk, enabling attackers to write files outside of the intended project directory. This allows an attacker to place malicious files in critical system locations, potentially leading to remote code execution through various attack vectors including web shell deployment, configuration file modification, or exploitation of other system components that trust files in these locations.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted, as it provides authenticated attackers with a pathway to achieve persistent remote code execution on GitLab servers. Once exploited, attackers can establish backdoors, exfiltrate sensitive data, modify project contents, or escalate privileges within the GitLab environment. The vulnerability affects organizations using GitLab for code repository management, CI/CD pipeline execution, and collaborative development, making it particularly dangerous for enterprises that rely heavily on these platforms. The attack requires only write access to a project, which is often granted to developers or team members, making the attack surface broader than initially apparent. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for command and script injection, as attackers can execute arbitrary commands through the compromised GitLab system.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including upgrading to GitLab versions 10.7.7, 10.8.6, or 11.0.4, which contain proper path validation fixes. Additionally, administrators should review and restrict project import permissions, implement network segmentation, and monitor for suspicious import activities. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper input validation and the principle of least privilege in software security design. Security teams should also consider implementing automated scanning tools to detect potentially malicious archive contents and establish incident response procedures for handling potential exploitation attempts. Organizations using older versions should apply the security patches immediately and conduct thorough security assessments of their GitLab environments to ensure no unauthorized access has occurred.