CVE-2026-24845VulnerabilityPublished 29 Jan 2026

CVE-2026-24845: chainguard-dev malcontent · Insufficiently Protected Credentials

Affects chainguard-dev malcontentSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 6.5 Medium : upgrade to 1.20.3 when convenient.

Data as of 25 Oct 2026, 19:02 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

6.5Medium

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

EPSS: 0.3% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 31% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 1.20.3

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

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: Required
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: None
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: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: Required: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability requires a user to take some action before the vulnerability can be exploited.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
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: None: There is no loss of integrity within 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 29 Jan 2026
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 2026-10-25.

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 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

Upgrade malcontent and chainguard-dev/malcontent to 1.20.3.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
chainguard-devmalcontent	Affected >=0.10.0 <1.20.3	Fixed in 1.20.3
GitHubchainguard-dev/malcontent`pkg:github/chainguard-dev/malcontent`Other threats	Affected <1.20.3 >=0.10.0	Fixed in 1.20.3

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

AI-suggested

European organizations should immediately upgrade malcontent to version 1.20.3 or later, which defaults to anonymous authentication for OCI image pulls, eliminating the credential leakage vector. Until upgrade, organizations should restrict malcontent scans to trusted registries only and avoid scanning images from unverified or external sources. Network-level controls can be implemented to block outbound requests to unknown or suspicious registry endpoints. Additionally, auditing and rotating Docker registry credentials regularly can limit the impact of any potential credential exposure. Integrating strict validation and whitelisting of OCI image sources in CI/CD pipelines will reduce the risk of scanning malicious images. Monitoring network traffic for unusual authentication redirects or unexpected outbound connections from scanning hosts can help detect exploitation attempts. Finally, educating security and DevOps teams about this vulnerability and safe scanning practices is essential to prevent inadvertent exposure.

Description

malcontent discovers supply-chain compromises through.context, differential analysis, and YARA. Starting in version 0.10.0 and prior to version 1.20.3, malcontent could be made to expose Docker registry credentials if it scanned a specially crafted OCI image reference.malcontent uses google/go-containerregistry for OCI image pulls, which by default uses the Docker credential keychain. A malicious registry could return a `WWW-Authenticate` header redirecting token authentication to an attacker-controlled endpoint, causing credentials to be sent to that endpoint. Version 1.20.3 fixes the issue by defaulting to anonymous auth for OCI pulls.

Impact

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to the confidentiality of Docker registry credentials used by malcontent during supply chain security scans. Exposure of these credentials could allow attackers to access private container images, modify or replace images, and potentially introduce malicious code into the software supply chain. This risk is particularly critical for organizations relying on containerized deployments and DevSecOps pipelines that integrate malcontent for image scanning. Compromise of registry credentials can lead to broader supply chain attacks, undermining trust in software integrity and causing operational disruptions. Additionally, leaked credentials could be used for lateral movement within cloud or on-premises environments. The vulnerability's exploitation requires scanning a malicious image, which could occur if an attacker convinces an analyst or automated system to scan a crafted image from an attacker-controlled registry. European entities with stringent data protection regulations (e.g., GDPR) may also face compliance risks if credential leakage leads to unauthorized access or data breaches.

CWE-522Insufficiently Protected Credentials (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessOWASP Top 10 A06:2025: Insecure Design (opens in a new tab)
The product transmits or stores authentication credentials, but it uses an insecure method that is susceptible to unauthorized interception and/or retrieval.
Architecture and Design
Use an appropriate security mechanism to protect the credentials.
Architecture and Design
Make appropriate use of cryptography to protect the credentials.
Implementation
Use industry standards to protect the credentials (e.g. LDAP, keystore, etc.).
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Secure Design Principles (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V2.10.3 (opens in a new tab)
V2.8.5 (opens in a new tab)
V2.8.4 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Session Sidejacking (opens in a new tab)
Signature Spoofing by Key Theft (opens in a new tab)
Password Recovery Exploitation (opens in a new tab)
Kerberoasting (opens in a new tab)
Modify Existing Service (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 29 Jan 2026, 21:42 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-522

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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