CVE-2022-3280 is an open redirect vulnerability identified in GitLab Community Edition (CE) and Enterprise Edition (EE) affecting all versions from 10.1 up to but not including 15.3.5, versions 15.4 up to but not including 15.4.4, and versions 15.5 up to but not including 15.5.2. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-601, which pertains to URL redirection to untrusted sites, commonly known as an 'open redirect'. This flaw allows an attacker to craft a URL that appears to be from a legitimate GitLab instance but redirects users to arbitrary external websites. The vulnerability arises because GitLab does not sufficiently validate or restrict the destination URLs in certain redirect parameters, enabling malicious actors to exploit this behavior to deceive users. The attack vector is network-based (AV:N), requires low attack complexity (AC:L), and needs the attacker to have some level of privileges (PR:L) on the GitLab instance. User interaction is required (UI:R) as the victim must click or be redirected via a link. The vulnerability does not impact confidentiality or availability but can affect integrity by misleading users to malicious sites, potentially facilitating phishing, credential theft, or malware distribution. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 3.5, indicating a low severity level. No known exploits in the wild have been reported, and no official patch links were provided in the source data, though GitLab has released fixed versions addressing this issue. The vulnerability affects a broad range of GitLab versions, which is a widely used DevOps platform for source code management and CI/CD pipelines, making it relevant for organizations relying on GitLab for software development and collaboration.

For European organizations, the open redirect vulnerability in GitLab can be leveraged by attackers to conduct phishing campaigns or social engineering attacks by exploiting the trust users place in their internal or external GitLab instances. Although the vulnerability itself does not directly compromise source code confidentiality or system availability, it can serve as a stepping stone for more sophisticated attacks if users are redirected to malicious sites designed to harvest credentials or deliver malware. Organizations with large developer teams or those integrating GitLab with other internal tools may face increased risk of user-targeted attacks. The impact is more pronounced in sectors with high reliance on GitLab for critical development workflows, such as technology firms, financial institutions, and government agencies. The low CVSS score reflects limited direct technical impact, but the potential for indirect compromise through user deception should not be underestimated. Additionally, since the vulnerability requires some level of authenticated access and user interaction, the risk is mitigated somewhat but still relevant in environments where users may be less security-aware or where phishing defenses are weak.

1. Upgrade GitLab instances to the latest patched versions: specifically, versions 15.3.5 or later for the 15.3.x branch, 15.4.4 or later for the 15.4.x branch, and 15.5.2 or later for the 15.5.x branch. 2. Implement strict URL validation and whitelisting on any custom integrations or plugins that handle redirects to ensure only trusted domains are allowed. 3. Educate users and developers about the risks of clicking on unexpected or suspicious links, even if they appear to originate from trusted internal services. 4. Monitor GitLab logs for unusual redirect patterns or access attempts that may indicate exploitation attempts. 5. Employ web application firewalls (WAFs) with rules to detect and block open redirect attempts targeting GitLab URLs. 6. Review and restrict user privileges to limit the number of users who can generate or manipulate URLs that may cause redirects. 7. Use multi-factor authentication (MFA) to reduce the risk of credential theft resulting from phishing attacks leveraging this vulnerability. 8. Conduct regular security assessments and penetration tests focusing on web application redirect behaviors within the organization’s GitLab deployment.