Portainer missing authorization on Docker plugin endpoints, which allows host RCE

Exploitation

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

CVSS 4.0

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

EPSS

• CVE-2026-44848: 0.40% estimated exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 34.51 (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.

Summary Portainer enforces Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) on top of the Docker API. The proxy layer routes incoming Docker API requests to per-resource handlers (containers, images, services, volumes, etc.) that apply authorization checks. The Docker plugin management endpoints (/plugins/) were not registered with a handler, so standard users with endpoint access could call privileged plugin operations — including installing and enabling plugins — directly against the underlying Docker daemon. The vulnerability is exposed when a non-admin Portainer user (Standard User role, or any role granted endpoint-level access) has been given access to a Docker endpoint via Portainer RBAC. Administrators and users without Docker endpoint access are not affected. A regular user with access to a Docker endpoint can: - Pull an arbitrary plugin from any registry via POST /plugins/pull. - Grant it the privileges it requests, including CAPSYSADMIN and host-path mounts. - Enable the plugin via POST…

Published by the source

14 May 2026, 16:22 UTC

Last modified by the source

9 Jun 2026, 10:24 UTC

Source last checked

26 Oct 2026, 15:23 UTC

1. Revision 1 · created · 26 Oct 2026

   Published from ghsa record GHSA-rrmm-9v76-h3p4

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# Patch Next advisory brief: CVE-2026-44848

Advisory: Portainer missing authorization on Docker plugin endpoints, which allows host RCE
IDs: CVE-2026-44848, GHSA-rrmm-9v76-h3p4
Record: https://patchnext.com/advisories/cve-2026-44848 (revision 1, source checked 26 Oct 2026, 15:23 UTC)
Inventory: none attached. This brief comes from a public page and does not say whether any deployment is affected.
Severity: Critical (CVSS 9.4)
Exploitation: no confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next confirms exploitation only from CISA KEV.
Vendor response: Vendor fix available; fixed versions by package: github.com/portainer/portainer 2.41.0, 2.39.2, 2.33.8. A vendor fix does not mean a deployment is fixed.

## Affected components
- Go github.com/portainer/portainer: affected >= 2.33.0, < 2.33.8; >= 2.39.0, < 2.39.2; >= 2.40.0, < 2.41.0; fixed in 2.39.2, 2.33.8, 2.41.0

## Suggested inspection (read-only)
- Go github.com/portainer/portainer: 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/portainer/portainer.
- 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-rrmm-9v76-h3p4 (GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-rrmm-9v76-h3p4 lists affected ranges: Go github.com/portainer/portainer >=2.33.0 =2.39.0 =2.40.0 <2.41.0)

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