CVE-2022-2592 in Community Edition
Summary
by MITRE • 10/17/2022
A lack of length validation in Snippet descriptions in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions prior to 15.1.6, 15.2 prior to 15.2.4 and 15.3 prior to 15.3.2 allows an authenticated attacker to create a maliciously large Snippet which when requested with or without authentication places excessive load on the server, potential leading to Denial of Service.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/26/2026
The vulnerability described in CVE-2022-2592 represents a critical denial of service weakness within GitLab's snippet handling mechanism that affects multiple versions of the GitLab Community and Enterprise editions. This issue stems from insufficient input validation specifically targeting the length of snippet descriptions, creating a pathway for authenticated attackers to exploit the system's resource management capabilities. The flaw allows malicious actors to craft exceptionally large snippet descriptions that, when processed by the GitLab server, consume disproportionate system resources and potentially lead to complete service unavailability.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-131, which addresses improper handling of length parameters in data processing systems. The vulnerability manifests when GitLab processes snippet descriptions without enforcing reasonable size limits, enabling attackers to submit content that exceeds normal operational parameters. This lack of validation creates a scenario where the server must allocate memory and processing power to handle these oversized descriptions, leading to resource exhaustion. The attack vector requires only authenticated access to the GitLab instance, making it particularly dangerous as it can be executed by users with legitimate access rights who may have malicious intent or whose credentials have been compromised.
The operational impact of CVE-2022-2592 extends beyond simple resource consumption to potentially disrupt critical development workflows and collaboration environments that depend on GitLab services. When exploited, the vulnerability can cause the GitLab server to become unresponsive, preventing legitimate users from accessing or creating snippets, viewing project information, or performing other essential functions. The DoS condition can be triggered regardless of whether the malicious snippet is accessed with authentication or not, making it particularly insidious as it can be activated through various attack vectors. This vulnerability directly maps to ATT&CK technique T1499.004, which covers network denial of service attacks through resource exhaustion, and represents a significant threat to service availability in enterprise development environments.
Organizations using affected GitLab versions should prioritize immediate patching to address this vulnerability, with recommended updates to versions 15.1.6, 15.2.4, or 15.3.2 depending on their current installation. System administrators should also implement monitoring solutions to detect unusual resource consumption patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. Additional mitigations include implementing rate limiting on snippet creation operations, establishing size constraints for snippet descriptions, and conducting regular security audits of user permissions to prevent unauthorized access. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of input validation in preventing resource exhaustion attacks and highlights the need for comprehensive security testing of all user-facing data processing components within enterprise software platforms.