Arbitrary host CRI log file read via symlink following in CRI checkpoint restore

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-2026-53489: 0.17% estimated exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 6.92 (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 A bug was found in containerd where the CRI plugin restores container.log from a checkpoint image without validating a symlinked path. This could result in reading an arbitrary file on the host via kubectl logs. Patches This bug has been fixed in the following containerd versions: 2.3.2 2.2.5 2.1.9 Users should update to these versions to resolve the issue. Workarounds Ensure that only trusted images and checkpoints are used. Credits The containerd project would like to thank @gouldnicholas and @davidrxchester, Yuming Zhang and Song Li of Zhejiang University, Sangwon Ryu (@sangwon090), Henry Beberman (@hbeberman) of Microsoft, the GKE Security Team using Gemini, Anthropic Research, in collaboration with Claude, Robert Prast (@robertprast), Kyle Elliott (@kyle-elliott-tob) of Trail of Bits, and Zhenchen Wang (@Plucky923), who independently discovered and responsibly disclosed this issue in accordance with the containerd security policy. For more information If you have any…

Published by the source

19 Jun 2026, 19:35 UTC

Last modified by the source

19 Jun 2026, 19:35 UTC

Source last checked

26 Oct 2026, 15:24 UTC

1. Revision 1 · created · 26 Oct 2026

   Published from ghsa record GHSA-rgh6-rfwx-v388

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# Patch Next advisory brief: CVE-2026-53489

Advisory: Arbitrary host CRI log file read via symlink following in CRI checkpoint restore
IDs: CVE-2026-53489, GHSA-rgh6-rfwx-v388
Record: https://patchnext.com/advisories/cve-2026-53489 (revision 1, source checked 26 Oct 2026, 15:24 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/containerd/containerd/v2 2.3.2, 2.2.5, 2.1.9. A vendor fix does not mean a deployment is fixed.

## Affected components
- Go github.com/containerd/containerd/v2: affected >= 2.1.0, < 2.1.9; >= 2.2.0, < 2.2.5; >= 2.3.0, < 2.3.2; fixed in 2.1.9, 2.3.2, 2.2.5

## Suggested inspection (read-only)
- Go github.com/containerd/containerd/v2: 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/containerd/containerd/v2.
- 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-rgh6-rfwx-v388 (GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-rgh6-rfwx-v388 lists affected ranges: Go github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 >=2.1.0 =2.2.0 =2.3.0 <2.3.2)

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