Symlink Dereference Vulnerability in KubeVirt's virt-handler by Red Hat
CVE-2026-13201

7.3HIGH

Key Information:

Vendor

Red Hat
Status
Red Hat Openshift Virtualization 4
Vendor
CVE Published:
24 June 2026

What is CVE-2026-13201?

A vulnerability in KubeVirt's safepath package used by the virt-handler component allows an attacker with access to a virt-launcher pod to exploit the OpenAtNoFollow function. This function intends to prevent link-following but is compromised when a symlink is involved. Through this flaw, attackers can hijack IPC socket connections, leading to unauthorized control over VM domain lifecycle events. This can result in mismanagement of Virtual Machine states or crashes, considerably disrupting services and causing sustained denial of VM management across affected nodes. Further, this flaw can inadvertently adjust file ownership or permissions on unintended host paths, amplifying security risks.

References

https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-13201
vdb-entryx_refsource_REDHAT
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2492203
issue-trackingx_refsource_REDHAT

CVSS V3.1

Score:
7.3
Severity:
HIGH
Confidentiality:
None
Integrity:
Low
Availability:
None
Attack Vector:
Local
Attack Complexity:
Low
Privileges Required:
Low
User Interaction:
None
Scope:
Changed

Timeline

  • Vulnerability published

  • Vulnerability Reserved

Credit

This issue was discovered by Huzaifa Sidhpurwala (Red Hat).
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