CVE-2019-9225 in Community
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in GitLab Community and Enterprise Edition before 11.6.10, 11.7.x before 11.7.6, and 11.8.x before 11.8.1. It has Incorrect Access Control (issue 5 of 5).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/29/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-9225 represents a critical access control flaw within GitLab's authentication and authorization mechanisms. This issue affects multiple versions of GitLab Community and Enterprise Edition, specifically targeting releases prior to 11.6.10, 11.7.6, and 11.8.1 respectively. The flaw resides in GitLab's permission system where users with limited access levels can potentially bypass intended restrictions and gain elevated privileges. This incorrect access control vulnerability allows attackers to exploit weaknesses in the platform's security model, creating opportunities for unauthorized access to sensitive repositories, project data, and administrative functions. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-284, which specifically addresses improper access control, making it a fundamental security weakness that undermines the core security architecture of the platform.
The technical implementation of this access control flaw manifests when GitLab fails to properly validate user permissions during critical operations within the application. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to perform actions that should be restricted to specific user roles or groups, potentially accessing private projects, modifying code, viewing confidential information, or executing administrative commands. The flaw occurs during the validation process where GitLab does not adequately verify whether a user possesses sufficient privileges to perform certain operations, creating a path for privilege escalation. This issue particularly impacts organizations relying on GitLab for version control and collaboration, as it can lead to unauthorized code modifications, data exposure, and potential compromise of the entire development environment. The vulnerability affects both community and enterprise editions, indicating a widespread impact across different deployment models.
The operational impact of CVE-2019-9225 extends far beyond simple unauthorized access, potentially enabling complete compromise of development environments and sensitive code repositories. Organizations using affected GitLab versions face risks including intellectual property theft, code tampering, data breaches, and potential lateral movement within their network infrastructure. The vulnerability can be exploited by both internal and external threat actors, making it particularly dangerous as it undermines the trust model that GitLab's access control system is designed to maintain. Security teams must consider that this flaw could be used to establish persistent access points within development environments, potentially enabling attackers to maintain long-term presence while continuing to exploit other vulnerabilities. The impact is especially severe for organizations that store sensitive source code, proprietary algorithms, or regulated data within their GitLab instances, as the vulnerability could expose critical business assets.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2019-9225 require immediate patching of affected GitLab installations to versions 11.6.10, 11.7.6, or 11.8.1 respectively, as these releases contain the necessary security fixes. Organizations should conduct thorough security assessments of their GitLab environments to identify any potential exploitation that may have occurred before patching. Network segmentation and monitoring should be implemented to detect unauthorized access attempts, particularly focusing on authentication and authorization events within the GitLab system. Access control policies should be reviewed and strengthened, ensuring that least privilege principles are strictly enforced. Security teams should also implement continuous monitoring for suspicious activities related to repository access, code modifications, and user privilege changes. The remediation process should include comprehensive testing of the patched environment to ensure that the access control mechanisms function correctly. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing additional security controls such as two-factor authentication, enhanced logging, and regular security audits to prevent similar vulnerabilities from emerging in the future. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK techniques related to privilege escalation and credential access, emphasizing the need for comprehensive defensive measures across the entire security infrastructure.