Canonical LXD Arbitrary File Read via Template Injection in Snapshot Patterns

Exploitation

No confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next marks exploitation only from CISA KEV.

CVSS 4.0

7.1 · CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N · score source

EPSS

• CVE-2025-54287: 0.38% estimated exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 31.56 (FIRST EPSS, 2026-11-03). This is a model estimate, not proof of exploitation or customer exposure.

As published by the source; long descriptions are shortened.

Impact In LXD's instance snapshot creation functionality, the Pongo2 template engine is used in the snapshots.pattern configuration for generating snapshot names. While code execution functionality has not been found in this template engine, it has file reading capabilities, creating a vulnerability that allows arbitrary file reading through template injection attacks. Reproduction Steps 1. Log in to LXD-UI with an account that has permissions to modify instance settings 2. Set the following template injection payload in the instance snapshot pattern: Note that the above template uses the Pongo2 template engine's include tag to read system files. It also uses urlencode and slice filters to bypass character count and type restrictions. 3. Set scheduled snapshots to run every minute and wait for snapshot generation 4. Wait about a minute and confirm that file contents can be obtained from the created snapshot name Risk The attack requires having configuration change permissions for LXD…

Published by the source

2 Oct 2025, 21:21 UTC

Last modified by the source

16 Jan 2026, 22:03 UTC

Source last checked

26 Oct 2026, 15:14 UTC

1. Revision 1 · created · 26 Oct 2026

   Published from ghsa record GHSA-w2hg-2v4p-vmh6

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# Patch Next advisory brief: CVE-2025-54287

Advisory: Canonical LXD Arbitrary File Read via Template Injection in Snapshot Patterns
IDs: CVE-2025-54287, GHSA-w2hg-2v4p-vmh6
Record: https://patchnext.com/advisories/cve-2025-54287 (revision 1, source checked 26 Oct 2026, 15:14 UTC)
Inventory: none attached. This brief comes from a public page and does not say whether any deployment is affected.
Severity: High (CVSS 7.1)
Exploitation: no confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next confirms exploitation only from CISA KEV.
Vendor response: Vendor fix available; fixed versions by package: github.com/lxc/lxd 6.5.0, 5.21.4, 0.0.0-20250827065555-0494f5d47e41. A vendor fix does not mean a deployment is fixed.

## Affected components
- Go github.com/lxc/lxd: affected >= 0.0.0-20200331193331-03aab09f5b5c, < 0.0.0-20250827065555-0494f5d47e41; >= 4.0.0, < 5.21.4; >= 6.0.0, < 6.5.0; fixed in 6.5.0, 0.0.0-20250827065555-0494f5d47e41, 5.21.4

## Suggested inspection (read-only)
- Go github.com/lxc/lxd: check the installed version with your package manager.

## Supported action
Upgrade each affected component to a fixed version on its release line. For a transitive dependency, upgrade the parent package or add an override or constraint, then regenerate the lockfile. Redeploy every environment that ran an affected version.

## Required regression checks
- Run the test suite and a production build.
- Exercise the features that depend on github.com/lxc/lxd.
- Repeat the inspection and confirm that only fixed versions remain installed.

## Rollback considerations
- Keep the previous lockfile and deployment artifact. Rolling back reinstates the vulnerable version, so apply any documented mitigation while you fix forward.

## Unresolved questions
- Which deployments run an affected version?
- Exploitation status can change. Check again before lowering the priority.
- Mark the work resolved only after the fixed version is verified in production.

## Sources
- Verified: https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-w2hg-2v4p-vmh6 (GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-w2hg-2v4p-vmh6 lists affected ranges: Go github.com/lxc/lxd >=0.0.0-20200331193331-03aab09f5b5c =4.0.0 =6.0.0 <6.5.0)

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