VulnerabilityPublished 12 Jun 2024Updated 21 Aug 2026

CVE-2024-5154: cri-o · Path Traversal

Affects cri-oSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 8.1 High.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 14:05 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

8.1High

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 1.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 68% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: High
User Interaction: Required
Scope: Changed
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: High
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: High: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide significant (e.g., administrative) control over the vulnerable component that could affect component-wide settings and files.
User Interaction: Required: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability requires a user to take some action before the vulnerability can be exploited.
Scope: Changed: An exploited vulnerability can affect resources beyond the security scope managed by the security authority of the vulnerable component. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are different and managed by different security authorities.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: High: There is a total loss of integrity, or a complete loss of protection. For example, the attacker is able to modify any/all files protected by the impacted component. Alternatively, only some files can be modified, but malicious modification would present a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 12 Jun 2024
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
GitHubcri-o/cri-o`pkg:github/cri-o/cri-o`Other threats	Affected =1.28.6 =1.29.4 =1.30.0	Fixed in–

Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2024-5154, organizations should immediately upgrade cri-o to a patched version once available from the vendor or community. Until patches are released, restrict container privileges by enforcing the principle of least privilege, avoiding running containers with elevated capabilities or as root. Implement strict admission controls and security policies in Kubernetes to prevent untrusted or potentially malicious containers from running. Use security modules such as SELinux or AppArmor to enforce mandatory access controls that limit container access to host filesystems. Monitor container activity for suspicious symbolic link creation or unexpected file access patterns. Employ runtime security tools that detect container breakout attempts. Additionally, isolate sensitive workloads on dedicated nodes and limit host filesystem mounts inside containers. Regularly audit container runtime configurations and update to the latest secure versions. Finally, educate DevOps and security teams about this vulnerability to ensure rapid response and remediation.

Description

A flaw was found in cri-o. A malicious container can create a symbolic link to arbitrary files on the host via directory traversal (“../“). This flaw allows the container to read and write to arbitrary files on the host system.

Impact

The impact of CVE-2024-5154 is significant for organizations using cri-o as their container runtime, particularly in Kubernetes environments. Successful exploitation allows malicious containers to break out of their isolation and access or modify arbitrary host files, compromising the confidentiality and integrity of the host system. This can lead to unauthorized data access, tampering with critical system files, and potential privilege escalation to the host OS level. Organizations running multi-tenant clusters or hosting sensitive workloads face increased risk of data breaches and operational disruption. The vulnerability undermines trust in container isolation, potentially affecting cloud service providers, managed Kubernetes platforms, and enterprises relying on container security. Although no active exploits are reported, the ease of exploitation (low attack complexity) and the high privileges required within the container mean that insider threats or compromised containers pose a serious risk. The absence of availability impact reduces the risk of denial-of-service but does not diminish the threat to data security and system integrity.

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 26 Feb 2026, 15:15 UTC

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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