GitLab CVSS 10 File-Read Flaw Draws In-the-Wild Probes After Disclosure

GitLab has released patches to address multiple flaws, including a maximum-severity security vulnerability that has witnessed in-the-wild probes within hours of public disclosure.

The vulnerability in question is CVE-2026-85706 (CVSS score: 10.0), a path traversal issue in the repository commits API that could allow an unauthenticated user to read arbitrary files from the GitLab server under certain conditions.

The problem, per GitLab, stems from "improper path confinement and missing authentication enforcement in the repository commits API."

The issue impacts the following versions of GitLab Community Edition (CE) and Enterprise Edition (EE) -

According to preemptive exposure management firm watchTowr, the vulnerability is already witnessing active in-the-wild probes since 06:00 UTC on September 11, 2026. The issue, it said, allows an external attacker to read log files and GitLab-specific configuration files to obtain credentials, secrets, and sensitive information.