CVE-2019-10112 in Community Edition
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in GitLab Community and Enterprise Edition before 11.7.8, 11.8.x before 11.8.4, and 11.9.x before 11.9.2. The construction of the HMAC key was insecurely derived.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/21/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-10112 represents a critical cryptographic weakness in GitLab's authentication and authorization mechanisms that affected multiple versions of the platform. This issue stems from an insecure implementation of HMAC key derivation, which fundamentally undermines the security of the system's cryptographic operations. The vulnerability impacts both Community and Enterprise editions of GitLab, with specific version ranges affected including releases before 11.7.8, 11.8.x releases before 11.8.4, and 11.9.x releases before 11.9.2. The insecure key derivation process creates predictable cryptographic keys that can be exploited by attackers to compromise the integrity of GitLab's security controls.
The technical flaw manifests in how GitLab constructs HMAC keys for cryptographic operations, particularly within its session management and authentication systems. This insecure key derivation process violates fundamental cryptographic principles that require keys to be generated using secure random number generators and proper key derivation functions. The vulnerability falls under the CWE-327 weakness category, which specifically addresses the use of weak cryptographic algorithms and insecure key derivation practices. When HMAC keys are improperly derived, they become susceptible to various attacks including key recovery, session hijacking, and unauthorized access to protected resources. The weakness creates a direct pathway for attackers to bypass authentication mechanisms and gain elevated privileges within the GitLab environment.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple authentication bypasses, creating a comprehensive security risk that affects the entire GitLab ecosystem. Attackers who exploit this vulnerability can potentially impersonate legitimate users, access private repositories, modify code, and manipulate project data without detection. The compromised cryptographic foundation affects not only user authentication but also the integrity of GitLab's API endpoints, webhooks, and other security-sensitive components that rely on proper HMAC implementation. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1550.001, which covers the use of credentials from password reuse, as compromised session tokens could be used to maintain persistent access to GitLab instances. The impact is particularly severe in enterprise environments where GitLab serves as a central code repository and collaboration platform, potentially exposing sensitive intellectual property and source code to unauthorized parties.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2019-10112 require immediate patching of affected GitLab installations to the recommended secure versions. Organizations should prioritize updating their GitLab instances to versions 11.7.8, 11.8.4, or 11.9.2, depending on their current release cycle. Beyond patching, system administrators should implement comprehensive monitoring for suspicious authentication patterns and session activity that could indicate exploitation attempts. The remediation process should include rotating all session tokens and credentials for users who may have been affected during the vulnerable period. Security teams should also conduct thorough audits of their GitLab configurations to ensure that no other cryptographic weaknesses exist within their deployment. Additional defensive measures include implementing network-based monitoring for unauthorized access attempts and establishing incident response procedures specifically designed to handle cryptographic compromise scenarios. Organizations should consider implementing multi-factor authentication as an additional security layer, though this does not directly address the HMAC key derivation vulnerability itself. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper cryptographic implementation and highlights the need for regular security assessments of core platform components that handle authentication and authorization functions.