CVE-2026-97229: Critical GitLab RCE Flaw Enables Unauthenticated Code Execution

GitLab issued emergency security updates for CVE-2026-97229 — a critical (CVSS 3.1 10.0) unauthenticated remote code execution vulnerability in the CI/CD Regular Expression Compiler affecting GitLab CE/EE branches 19.2, 19.3, and 19.4; self-managed instances should immediately upgrade to 19.2.8, 19.3.4, or 19.4.2. The advisory explains the root cause (integer overflow in regex compiler), potential impact on source code, CI/CD secrets and deployments, and recommends inventorying instances, monitoring CI/CD configuration and server-side processes, rotating credentials if compromise is suspected, and relying on behavioral detection since no attack-specific IOCs were published; GitLab.com has already been patched and no confirmed active exploitation was reported at disclosure.