How to fix CVE-2025-4278?

Within 24 hours: Identify all GitLab instances running versions 18.0.0 or 18.0.1 and isolate them from production workflows if possible; communicate with development teams to avoid the new search feature. Within 7 days: Upgrade to GitLab 18.0.2 or later when available; if unavailable, implement WAF rules to block search parameter injection and restrict search functionality to authenticated users only. Within 30 days: Conduct audit logs review for suspicious search activity and account access patterns; verify no unauthorized accounts were created; perform security awareness training on phishing risks related to injected content.

Is Gitlab affected by CVE-2025-4278?

A critical vulnerability in GitLab versions 18.0-18.0.1 allows attackers to inject malicious code through the search functionality, potentially enabling account takeover of any user on affected instances.

CVE-2025-4278

EUVD-2025-18169 HIGH

2025-06-12 [email protected]

8.7

CVSS 3.1

CVSS Vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N

Attack Vector

Network

Attack Complexity

Low

Privileges Required

Low

User Interaction

Required

Scope

Changed

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

None

Lifecycle Timeline

Patch Released

Mar 31, 2026 - 21:13 nvd

Patch available

Analysis Generated

Mar 14, 2026 - 21:20 vuln.today

EUVD ID Assigned

Mar 14, 2026 - 21:20 euvd

EUVD-2025-18169

CVE Published

Jun 12, 2025 - 10:16 nvd

HIGH 8.7

Description

An issue has been discovered in GitLab CE/EE affecting all versions starting with 18.0 before 18.0.2. Under certain conditions html injection in new search page could lead to account takeover.

Analysis

CVE-2025-4278 is an HTML injection vulnerability in GitLab CE/EE versions 18.0.0 through 18.0.1 that allows authenticated attackers to inject malicious HTML through the new search page. Under specific conditions, this vulnerability can escalate to account takeover by leveraging user interaction (UI requirement), with a CVSS score of 8.7 indicating high severity. The vulnerability requires low attack complexity and network accessibility, making it a significant risk for organizations running affected GitLab versions.

Technical Context

This vulnerability is rooted in CWE-80 (Improper Neutralization of Script-Related HTML Tags in a Web Page), which occurs when user-supplied input is not properly sanitized before being rendered in HTML context. In GitLab's new search page functionality, inadequate input validation allows attackers to inject arbitrary HTML/JavaScript payloads. The vulnerability exists in the search parameter processing logic of GitLab CE/EE (CPE identifiers: cpe:2.3:a:gitlab:gitlab:* versions 18.0.0-18.0.1). The root cause stems from insufficient output encoding or input validation in the search feature's rendering pipeline, enabling stored or reflected HTML injection that executes in the victim's browser session within the GitLab application context.

Affected Products

GitLab Community Edition (CE) (18.0.0 through 18.0.1); GitLab Enterprise Edition (EE) (18.0.0 through 18.0.1)

Priority Score

Low Medium High Critical

KEV: 0

EPSS: +0.1

CVSS: +44

POC: 0

Vendor Status

Ubuntu

Priority: Medium

gitlab

Release	Status	Version
xenial	ignored	-
jammy	DNE	-
noble	DNE	-
oracular	DNE	-
plucky	DNE	-
upstream	needs-triage	-

Debian