CVE-2025-1540Public exploitNetwork attack vector

Internal repository disclosure via cleared External status

Published Mar 6, 2025 · Updated Mar 6, 2025

Incorrect authorization in GitLab CE/EE allows remote authenticated users to read and clone internal projects through a SAML login. During SAML sign-in, user synchronization writes null to user.external when the SAML response omits an External designation, replacing a manually assigned true value. The account must already be manually marked External, and the instance must use SAML without supplying that attribute; the lost restriction exposes Internal projects for reading and cloning.

CVSS severity3.1
Low
EPSS probability0.23%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Incorrect authorization in GitLab CE/EE allows remote authenticated users to read and clone internal projects through a SAML login. During SAML sign-in, user synchronization writes null to user.external when the SAML response omits an External designation, replacing a manually assigned true value. The account must already be manually marked External, and the instance must use SAML without supplying that attribute; the lost restriction exposes Internal projects for reading and cloning.

The record

CVE
CVE-2025-1540
Published
Mar 6, 2025
Updated
Mar 6, 2025
Vendor
GitLab
Product
GitLab
Classifications
CWE-863, T1213.003
Attack vector
network
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Mar 6, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Mar 6, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=17.5 <17.6.5
  2. Affected versionversion=17.7 <17.7.4
  3. Affected versionversion=17.8 <17.8.2

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

GitLab · GitLabversion=17.5 <17.6.5; version=17.7 <17.7.4; version=17.8 <17.8.2

Published CVSS scores

3.1GitLab Inc.CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N
4.2NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-863Incorrect Authorization
T1213.003Code Repositories

Public exploit references

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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