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Full vulnerability report · 2026
CVE-2026-77176High confidence

Kata-containers: insufficient validation of createcontainer mount and storage rules in genpolicy

Red Hat · Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4

8.1HighCVSS 3.1
Recommended action
Within 7 days

High technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Fix not verified
R
Operational reassessment

Published severity in operational context

Open reassessment dashboard →
Published severityHighOperational priority:High, unchanged from published severity.unchanged

Evidence used

  • No CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.
  • EPSS is 0.48% for the current model date.

Compensating controls

  • Restrict the affected network interface to trusted sources where business-safe.
  • Monitor vendor guidance and exploitation sources for a material change.

Verification

  1. Confirm that the asset runs Red Hat Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 and falls inside the recorded affected range.
  2. Recheck the vendor advisory before scheduling a change because no verified fixed version is currently retained.
  3. Validate exposure, authentication requirements and compensating controls in the actual environment.
  4. Reopen this reassessment when CVSS, KEV, EPSS, exploit evidence or remediation changes.
Mitigation target: Within 30 daysRemediation target: Within 180 days

This automated reassessment organises public evidence. It does not know asset exposure, business impact or control effectiveness and does not replace CVSS or a human risk decision.

Direct vendor intelligence

Authoritative vendor CSAF and VEX advisories

Structured product status and remediation from the issuing vendor. Product-state explanations are always visible; large lists can be searched or downloaded.

1 current
CVE-2026-77176 · CSAF 2.0 · revision 3 · finalRed Hat Product Securitykata-containers: Insufficient validation of CreateContainer mount and storage rules in genpolicy
4 known affected

The vendor explicitly identifies these products as affected by this CVE.

  • kata-containers as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
  • kata-containers.src as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
  • openshift/ose-rhel-coreos-8 as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
  • openshift/ose-rhel-coreos-9 as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
Summary
A flaw was found in Kata Containers. In configurations utilizing genpolicy for Confidential Containers guest protection, a malicious host operator can exploit insufficient validation of CreateContainer mount and storage rules. This allows them to mount arbitrary container-rootfs paths over sensitive host locations or provision arbitrary content, potentially exposing confidential information or enabling the acceptance of attacker-controlled input.
Remediation
Affected
Optional official sources

National CERT insights
?CERT means Computer Emergency Response Team; CSIRT is the closely related term Computer Security Incident Response Team.

Choose official national sources for this report. Each advisory shows its original language. Your selection is remembered on this device and included in shared links.

Official European source

ENISA European Vulnerability Database

Official EUVD identifiers, advisory evidence and known-exploited context. Missing fields are not treated as evidence of low risk.

1 current
ENISA EUVD identifier

EUVD-2026-63432

No EUVD known-exploited evidence

A flaw was found in Kata Containers. In configurations utilizing genpolicy for Confidential Containers guest protection, a malicious host operator can exploit insufficient validation of CreateContainer mount and storage rules. This allows them to mount arbitrary container-rootfs paths over sensitive host locations or provision arbitrary content, potentially exposing confidential information or enabling the acceptance of attacker-controlled input.

EUVD state
Present in the current official mapping
Known exploitation
Not present in the current ENISA EUVD known-exploited dataset. This is not proof of no exploitation.
ENISA score
8.1 · CVSS 3.1
Advisory evidence
No linked advisory details stored yet
Recommended actionWithin 7 days

High technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Fix not verified
01

What, why and how

A flaw was found in Kata Containers. In configurations utilizing genpolicy for Confidential Containers guest protection, a malicious host operator can exploit insufficient validation of CreateContainer mount and storage rules. This allows them to mount arbitrary container-rootfs paths over sensitive host locations or provision arbitrary content, potentially exposing confidential information or enabling the acceptance of attacker-controlled input.

What

A flaw was found in Kata Containers. In configurations utilizing genpolicy for Confidential Containers guest protection, a malicious host operator can exploit insufficient validation of CreateContainer mount and storage rules. This allows them to mount arbitrary container-rootfs paths over sensitive host locations or provision arbitrary content, potentially exposing confidential information or enabling the acceptance of attacker-controlled input.

Why

The product allows user input to control or influence paths or file names that are used in filesystem operations.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation with low privileges. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

What

A flaw was found in Kata Containers. In configurations utilizing genpolicy for Confidential Containers guest protection, a malicious host operator can exploit insufficient validation of CreateContainer mount and storage rules. This allows them to mount arbitrary container-rootfs paths over sensitive host locations or provision arbitrary content, potentially exposing confidential information or enabling the acceptance of attacker-controlled input.

Why

The product allows user input to control or influence paths or file names that are used in filesystem operations.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation with low privileges. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

02

Exploit reality and attack path

CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.

Observed exploitation
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
No confirmed evidence

No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.

Public PoC / exploit material
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
None recorded

No exploit-tagged reference or CISA SSVC proof-of-concept state is currently recorded. Research may still exist outside the structured feeds.

Likely attack path
a network path → External Control of File Name or Path → cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor
Attack surface
Network
Privileges required
Low: a basic authenticated account is required
User interaction
None
Attack complexity
Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
Security boundary
Unchanged: impact remains within the vulnerable component's security authority
Weakness
?CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness.
CWE-73 ↗

CWE-73: External Control of File Name or Path. The product allows user input to control or influence paths or file names that are used in filesystem operations.

CVSS vector
?CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N

Common Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.

AVNetworkAttack vector: The vulnerable component can be reached over a network.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.PRLowPrivileges required: The attacker needs basic user-level privileges.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.SUnchangedScope: The security impact remains within the vulnerable component's authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.IHighIntegrity impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.ANoneAvailability impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
No specific living-off-the-land technique is confirmed in the structured sources. Monitor normal administration tools for activity inconsistent with the affected service's baseline.
NetworkCWE-73
A

Official authority intelligence

Only matched European and national findings are included. Language selectors and unavailable sources are omitted.

ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2026-63432Official EUVD mapping

A flaw was found in Kata Containers. In configurations utilizing genpolicy for Confidential Containers guest protection, a malicious host operator can exploit insufficient validation of CreateContainer mount and storage rules. This allows them to mount arbitrary container-rootfs paths over sensitive host locations or provision arbitrary content, potentially exposing confidential information or enabling the acceptance of attacker-controlled input.

Official EUVD record ↗
Cyber Security Agency of Singapore · English · CSA-SB-20260826Security Bulletin 26 Aug 2026

The Cyber Security Agency of Singapore included this CVE in its official Security Bulletin 26 Aug 2026, published on 26 August 2026. Open the linked bulletin for the product, severity and reference information published in that issue.

Official advisory ↗
03

Patch and workaround

Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.

Status
?Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Fix not verified
Affected
  • kata-containers as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
  • kata-containers.src as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
  • openshift/ose-rhel-coreos-8 as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
  • openshift/ose-rhel-coreos-9 as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
Fixed
No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
Action
No verified patch reference is present in the current structured sources. Check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Workaround
No verified workaround is recorded. If business-safe, reduce exposure to the affected interface and allow only trusted sources until authoritative guidance is available.
04

Evidence and provenance

Published 20 Aug 2026 · Last source change 1 Sept 2026, 11:44 UTC · CWE-73 · External Control of File Name or Path

CVE recordCVE.org · 5.2
CVSS sourceCNA
EPSS source
?The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.
FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-23
European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2026-63432
Product sourceVendor CSAF · Red Hat Product Security
Remediation sourceVendor CSAF · Red Hat Product Security
CWE sourceCNA
NVD statusNVD awaiting enrichment

Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates ↗
  1. Affected versionsThe structured affected or fixed version information changed.
    Before
    kata-containers as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4; kata-containers.src as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4; openshift/ose-rhel-coreos-9 as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
    After
    kata-containers as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4; kata-containers.src as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4; openshift/ose-rhel-coreos-8 as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4; openshift/ose-rhel-coreos-9 as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
    Red Hat Product Security ↗
  2. Affected versionsThe structured affected or fixed version information changed.
    Before
    kata-containers as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4; kata-containers.src as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4; rhcos as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
    After
    kata-containers as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4; kata-containers.src as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4; openshift/ose-rhel-coreos-9 as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
    Red Hat Product Security ↗
  3. Catalogue recordCVE added to the BlackTree catalogue.
    CNA ↗
Material fields only · duplicate refreshes suppressed · history retained for the configured operational retention period
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
CVE
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
CVSS
Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
EPSS
Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
CWE
Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
CNA
CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
CISA ADP
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
NVD
National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
CERT / CSIRT
A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
PoC
Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
CSAF
Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
LoTL
Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.
Free version - for non-commercial use only.CVE-2026-77176 · cve.blacktree.nl