CVE-2026-18951: Vulnerability in Red Hat Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI)
CVE-2026-18951 is a high-severity vulnerability in Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI) where the overlay for the training operator incorrectly aggregates trainjobs management permissions into the native Kubernetes edit ClusterRole. This misconfiguration allows any user with edit ClusterRole permissions in a namespace to create, modify, and delete TrainJobs. When combined with another vulnerability permitting arbitrary pod configurations, it could enable privilege escalation and potentially arbitrary code execution. The issue is specific to the RHOAI fork and not present in upstream Kubeflow trainer. Administrators are advised to adjust Kubernetes RBAC settings to explicitly manage trainjobs permissions and remove them from the aggregate-to-edit ClusterRole labels to reduce risk.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
The vulnerability in Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI) arises from the RHOAI overlay incorrectly aggregating trainjobs CRUD permissions into the native Kubernetes edit ClusterRole. This grants any user with edit ClusterRole permissions in a namespace the ability to create, modify, and delete TrainJobs. Combined with a separate vulnerability (TRN-01) that allows arbitrary pod configurations, a remote attacker with namespace editor privileges could escalate privileges, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution. This flaw is unique to the RHOAI fork and does not exist in the upstream Kubeflow trainer. The vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 score of 8.8, indicating high severity. The vendor advisory recommends reviewing and modifying Kubernetes RBAC configurations to explicitly manage trainjobs permissions and remove them from the aggregate-to-edit ClusterRole labels, preventing implicit permission grants to namespace editors.
Potential Impact
Any user with edit ClusterRole permissions in a namespace can create, modify, and delete TrainJobs, significantly increasing the attack surface. When combined with a separate vulnerability that permits arbitrary pod configurations, this can lead to privilege escalation and potentially arbitrary code execution within the affected environment. This could compromise confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the system components running Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI).
Mitigation Recommendations
Administrators should review and adjust Kubernetes RBAC configurations within Red Hat OpenShift AI to explicitly manage trainjobs permissions. This includes removing trainjobs from the aggregate-to-edit ClusterRole labels or requiring explicit RoleBindings for trainjobs access. These changes prevent implicit permission grants to namespace editors and reduce the attack surface. A restart or reload of affected components may be necessary for changes to take effect. There is no official patch or fix currently stated; patch status is not yet confirmed — check the Red Hat advisory for updates: https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-18951.
CVE-2026-18951: Vulnerability in Red Hat Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI)
Description
CVE-2026-18951 is a high-severity vulnerability in Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI) where the overlay for the training operator incorrectly aggregates trainjobs management permissions into the native Kubernetes edit ClusterRole. This misconfiguration allows any user with edit ClusterRole permissions in a namespace to create, modify, and delete TrainJobs. When combined with another vulnerability permitting arbitrary pod configurations, it could enable privilege escalation and potentially arbitrary code execution. The issue is specific to the RHOAI fork and not present in upstream Kubeflow trainer. Administrators are advised to adjust Kubernetes RBAC settings to explicitly manage trainjobs permissions and remove them from the aggregate-to-edit ClusterRole labels to reduce risk.
CVSS v3.1
Score 8.8high
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
The vulnerability in Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI) arises from the RHOAI overlay incorrectly aggregating trainjobs CRUD permissions into the native Kubernetes edit ClusterRole. This grants any user with edit ClusterRole permissions in a namespace the ability to create, modify, and delete TrainJobs. Combined with a separate vulnerability (TRN-01) that allows arbitrary pod configurations, a remote attacker with namespace editor privileges could escalate privileges, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution. This flaw is unique to the RHOAI fork and does not exist in the upstream Kubeflow trainer. The vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 score of 8.8, indicating high severity. The vendor advisory recommends reviewing and modifying Kubernetes RBAC configurations to explicitly manage trainjobs permissions and remove them from the aggregate-to-edit ClusterRole labels, preventing implicit permission grants to namespace editors.
Potential Impact
Any user with edit ClusterRole permissions in a namespace can create, modify, and delete TrainJobs, significantly increasing the attack surface. When combined with a separate vulnerability that permits arbitrary pod configurations, this can lead to privilege escalation and potentially arbitrary code execution within the affected environment. This could compromise confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the system components running Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI).
Mitigation Recommendations
Administrators should review and adjust Kubernetes RBAC configurations within Red Hat OpenShift AI to explicitly manage trainjobs permissions. This includes removing trainjobs from the aggregate-to-edit ClusterRole labels or requiring explicit RoleBindings for trainjobs access. These changes prevent implicit permission grants to namespace editors and reduce the attack surface. A restart or reload of affected components may be necessary for changes to take effect. There is no official patch or fix currently stated; patch status is not yet confirmed — check the Red Hat advisory for updates: https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-18951.
Technical Details
- Data Version
- 5.2
- Assigner Short Name
- redhat
- Date Reserved
- 2026-08-05T13:41:38.511Z
- Cvss Version
- 3.1
- State
- PUBLISHED
- Remediation Level
- null
- Vendor Advisory Urls
- [{"url":"https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-18951","vendor":"Red Hat"}]
Threat ID: 6a7a3b16bf8831d539856696
Added to database: 08/10/2026, 20:56:54 UTC
Last enriched: 08/10/2026, 21:11:46 UTC
Last updated: 08/11/2026, 03:55:47 UTC
Views: 9
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