CVE-2023-0450 in GitLab
Summary
by MITRE • 04/06/2023
An issue has been discovered in GitLab affecting all versions starting from 8.1 to 15.8.5, and from 15.9 to 15.9.4, and from 15.10 to 15.10.1. It was possible to add a branch with an ambiguous name that could be used to social engineer users.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/07/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2023-0450 represents a significant security flaw in GitLab's branch management system that spans multiple version ranges from 8.1 through 15.10.1. This issue arises from insufficient validation of branch names during creation processes, allowing malicious actors to exploit naming conventions that could confuse users and potentially lead to unauthorized access or data manipulation. The vulnerability specifically targets the core GitLab functionality where users can create new branches within projects, creating a pathway for social engineering attacks that leverage ambiguous naming to deceive users into interacting with unintended branches.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies in the inadequate input sanitization and validation mechanisms within GitLab's branch creation workflows. When users attempt to create new branches, the system fails to properly validate the uniqueness and clarity of branch names, particularly those that may contain ambiguous characters or resemble legitimate branch names in ways that could mislead users. This flaw operates under the CWE-20 principle of inadequate input validation, where the system does not sufficiently check or sanitize user-provided data before processing it. The vulnerability allows attackers to create branches with names that appear legitimate or familiar to users, making it difficult to distinguish between authentic and malicious branches during routine operations.
The operational impact of CVE-2023-0450 extends beyond simple naming confusion, creating potential vectors for sophisticated social engineering attacks that could compromise GitLab repositories and their associated codebases. Attackers could craft branch names that mimic legitimate development branches, release branches, or even administrative branches, leading to situations where developers might accidentally commit code to the wrong branch or inadvertently expose sensitive information. This vulnerability particularly affects collaborative development environments where multiple team members interact with the same repositories, as the ambiguous naming could result in code being pushed to unintended locations or users being misled about which branch they are working on. The security implications are significant as this could enable attackers to bypass normal access controls or manipulate the development workflow to their advantage.
Organizations using GitLab within the affected version ranges should immediately implement mitigations to address this vulnerability, including updating to patched versions where available and implementing additional validation measures within their GitLab configurations. The recommended approach includes enabling stricter branch naming policies and implementing automated checks that prevent the creation of ambiguous branch names that could be exploited. Security teams should also consider conducting comprehensive audits of existing repositories to identify any potentially malicious branches that may have been created due to this vulnerability. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving social engineering and credential access through manipulation of system interfaces, specifically targeting the T1550.001 technique related to legitimate credentials and the T1078.004 technique involving valid accounts. Organizations should also consider implementing additional monitoring and alerting mechanisms to detect suspicious branch creation activities that could indicate exploitation attempts of this vulnerability.