CVE-2025-1763 in Enterprise Edition
Summary
by MITRE • 05/30/2025
An issue has been discovered in GitLab EE that allows for cross-site-scripting attack and content security policy bypass in a user's browser under specific conditions, affecting all versions from 16.6 before 17.9.7, 17.10 before 17.10.5, and 17.11 before 17.11.1.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/09/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2025-1763 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within GitLab Enterprise Edition that enables attackers to execute malicious scripts in user browsers through content security policy bypass mechanisms. This issue specifically targets versions of GitLab that fall within the affected ranges, creating a window of opportunity for adversaries to exploit user sessions and potentially gain unauthorized access to sensitive data or system resources. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the web application's handling of user-generated content and dynamic content rendering processes.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves a sophisticated bypass of content security policy mechanisms that are designed to prevent unauthorized script execution within the browser environment. Attackers can craft malicious payloads that exploit specific conditions within GitLab's rendering pipeline, allowing them to inject and execute arbitrary JavaScript code in the context of a victim's browser session. This occurs when user input is improperly sanitized before being processed and displayed in web interfaces, particularly in areas where dynamic content generation occurs. The flaw typically manifests when users interact with specific web components or when viewing content that contains unescaped user-provided data, creating a pathway for attackers to circumvent standard security controls that should prevent such script execution.
The operational impact of CVE-2025-1763 extends beyond simple script injection, potentially enabling attackers to perform session hijacking, data exfiltration, and privilege escalation attacks. When exploited successfully, this vulnerability allows adversaries to execute malicious code within the victim's browser context, potentially leading to unauthorized access to project data, repository contents, user credentials, and other sensitive information. The attack surface is particularly concerning in enterprise environments where GitLab serves as a central collaboration platform for development teams, as successful exploitation could compromise entire development workflows and expose confidential source code or infrastructure details. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-79 which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws and represents a significant concern for organizations relying on GitLab for their software development operations.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should immediately implement mitigation strategies including upgrading to patched versions of GitLab, specifically versions 17.9.7, 17.10.5, or 17.11.1 depending on their current installation. The recommended approach involves comprehensive patch management procedures that include testing patches in staging environments before deployment to production systems. Additional protective measures include implementing stricter content security policy headers, enabling browser security features such as CSP reporting, and monitoring for suspicious user activities or unusual access patterns. Security teams should also conduct thorough vulnerability assessments to identify any potential exploitation attempts and establish incident response procedures that address browser-based attack vectors. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date security controls and highlights the need for continuous monitoring of security advisories from software vendors to prevent exploitation of known vulnerabilities in development platforms.