CVE-2024-5423
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability allows attackers to cause Denial of Service (DoS) conditions in GitLab instances by exploiting resource exhaustion through the banzai pipeline. All GitLab CE/EE installations within specified version ranges are affected, potentially making services unavailable to legitimate users.
💻 Affected Systems
- GitLab Community Edition
- GitLab Enterprise Edition
📦 What is this software?
Gitlab by Gitlab
GitLab is a complete DevOps platform providing source code management, CI/CD pipelines, security scanning, container registry, and collaboration tools used by millions of developers and thousands of enterprises worldwide. As both a cloud-hosted SaaS offering (GitLab.com) and self-managed software, G...
Learn more about Gitlab →Gitlab by Gitlab
GitLab is a complete DevOps platform providing source code management, CI/CD pipelines, security scanning, container registry, and collaboration tools used by millions of developers and thousands of enterprises worldwide. As both a cloud-hosted SaaS offering (GitLab.com) and self-managed software, G...
Learn more about Gitlab →Gitlab by Gitlab
GitLab is a complete DevOps platform providing source code management, CI/CD pipelines, security scanning, container registry, and collaboration tools used by millions of developers and thousands of enterprises worldwide. As both a cloud-hosted SaaS offering (GitLab.com) and self-managed software, G...
Learn more about Gitlab →Gitlab by Gitlab
GitLab is a complete DevOps platform providing source code management, CI/CD pipelines, security scanning, container registry, and collaboration tools used by millions of developers and thousands of enterprises worldwide. As both a cloud-hosted SaaS offering (GitLab.com) and self-managed software, G...
Learn more about Gitlab →Gitlab by Gitlab
GitLab is a complete DevOps platform providing source code management, CI/CD pipelines, security scanning, container registry, and collaboration tools used by millions of developers and thousands of enterprises worldwide. As both a cloud-hosted SaaS offering (GitLab.com) and self-managed software, G...
Learn more about Gitlab →Gitlab by Gitlab
GitLab is a complete DevOps platform providing source code management, CI/CD pipelines, security scanning, container registry, and collaboration tools used by millions of developers and thousands of enterprises worldwide. As both a cloud-hosted SaaS offering (GitLab.com) and self-managed software, G...
Learn more about Gitlab →⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete service unavailability for all users, requiring manual intervention to restore functionality.
Likely Case
Degraded performance or temporary service interruptions affecting user productivity.
If Mitigated
Minimal impact with proper rate limiting, resource monitoring, and network segmentation in place.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires authenticated access but is technically simple once access is obtained.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 17.0.6, 17.1.4, or 17.2.2
Vendor Advisory: https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/463807
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Backup your GitLab instance. 2. Update to GitLab 17.0.6, 17.1.4, or 17.2.2 using your package manager. 3. Restart GitLab services. 4. Verify the update was successful.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Rate Limiting Configuration
linuxImplement strict rate limiting on API endpoints and web interfaces to prevent resource exhaustion attacks.
# Configure in GitLab configuration file (gitlab.rb)
nginx['rate_limit_requests_per_period'] = 10
nginx['rate_limit_period'] = '1s'
Resource Monitoring and Alerting
linuxSet up monitoring for system resources (CPU, memory) and implement alerts for abnormal consumption patterns.
# Example Prometheus alert rule
ALERT HighMemoryUsage
IF node_memory_MemAvailable_bytes / node_memory_MemTotal_bytes * 100 < 10
FOR 5m
LABELS { severity = "critical" }
ANNOTATIONS {
summary = "High memory usage on {{ $labels.instance }}"
}
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict network segmentation to limit access to GitLab instances
- Enable comprehensive logging and monitoring for unusual resource consumption patterns
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check your GitLab version against affected ranges: 1.0-17.0.5, 17.1.0-17.1.3, or 17.2.0-17.2.1Check Version:
sudo gitlab-rake gitlab:env:info | grep 'Version:'Verify Fix Applied:
Confirm GitLab version is 17.0.6, 17.1.4, or 17.2.2 or later, and monitor for abnormal resource usage patterns.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusually high CPU/memory usage in system logs
- Multiple failed or slow banzai pipeline operations in GitLab logs
- Increased error rates in application logs
Network Indicators:
- Spike in requests to banzai-related endpoints
- Unusual traffic patterns from single IP addresses
SIEM Query:
source="gitlab.log" AND ("banzai" OR "pipeline") AND ("error" OR "timeout" OR "slow")