AUGUST 15, 2026
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Case File

CVE-2026-50540

CRITICAL · CVSS 9.6 EPSS 0.38% Public Exploit

Source: NVD + CISA KEV + EPSS · Published 2026-08-07 · Last synced 2026-08-15

CyberRota Analysis

AI-Generated

Kata Containers prior to version 4.0.0 are vulnerable to host code execution due to an unvalidated configuration path annotation, allowing pod users to load arbitrary TOML files from the host. This vulnerability enables attackers to execute code as root on the host by selecting a malicious hypervisor or virtio-fs daemon binary. Organizations using Kata Containers should prioritize upgrading to version 4.0.0 to mitigate this critical risk.

Public Exploit Signal

A public exploit, PoC, GitHub repository or Metasploit reference was detected for this CVE.

Detected Signals
code execution

Note: these links are listed for security research and verification purposes only.

CVE
CVE-2026-50540
Severity
CRITICAL
CVSS
9.6
EPSS
0.38%

Original NVD Description

Kata Containers is an open source project focusing on a standard implementation of lightweight Virtual Machines (VMs) that perform like containers. Prior to version 4.0.0, kata-runtime is vulnerable to host code execution via an unvalidated configuration path annotation. The runtime accepts an arbitrary io.katacontainers.config_path pod annotation and loads the referenced host TOML file without restriction. As a result, a pod user who can place a file at a host-visible path can supply a configuration that selects an attacker-controlled hypervisor or virtio-fs daemon binary, executing code as root on the host. This issue is fixed in version 4.0.0.