CVE-2024-21626VulnerabilityPublished 8 Feb 2024Updated 29 Oct 2026

Red Hat Security Advisory: runc security update

Affects Red Hat runcSource GCVE Database

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Public exploit available (Metasploit) · 18% EPSS : upgrade the Red Hat redhat/runc package to 9.2.1 as a priority.

Data as of 29 Oct 2026, 07:15 UTC

Severity

High

Rated by Threat Radar · No CVSS score from NVD or the CNA

EPSS: 18.9% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 97% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 9.2.1

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 8 Feb 2024
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: evidence found.
1 Metasploit module
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 29 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.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), 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

Upgrade the Red Hat redhat/runc package to 9.2.1.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Red Hatredhat/runc`pkg:rpm/redhat/runc`Other threats	Affected >=9.2 <9.2.1	Fixed in 9.2.1

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

AI-suggested

Red Hat has released an official security update for runC in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.2 Extended Update Support. Users should apply the update promptly to remediate the file descriptor leak vulnerability. Detailed update instructions are available in the Red Hat advisory and knowledge base article. Since a fix is available, no additional mitigation steps are required beyond applying the official patch.

Description

A security vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-21626 affects the runC container runtime tool used in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.2 Extended Update Support. The flaw involves a file descriptor leak, which could potentially lead to resource exhaustion or information disclosure. Red Hat has issued an important security update to address this issue. Public exploit code is available via Metasploit, but there are no known exploits in the wild at this time. The update is available for multiple architectures including x86_64, s390x, ppc64le, and aarch64.

Impact

The file descriptor leak in runC could lead to resource exhaustion or information leakage, potentially impacting container runtime stability and security. The availability of public exploit code increases the risk of exploitation, although no active exploitation has been observed. The issue is rated as important by Red Hat, indicating a significant security concern but not necessarily critical system compromise.

Summary

CVE-2024-21626 is a vulnerability in the runC container runtime tool involving a file descriptor leak. This flaw could allow an attacker to exhaust system resources or leak sensitive information by improperly managing file descriptors. Red Hat has released a security update for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.2 Extended Update Support to fix this issue. Public exploit code exists, indicating the vulnerability is exploitable, though no active exploitation has been reported. The update is distributed across various architectures and is rated as having an important security impact by Red Hat.

CWE-200Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessLikelihood of exploit: HighCWE Top 25 (2025): #20OWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
The product exposes sensitive information to an actor that is not explicitly authorized to have access to that information.
MITRE discourages mapping vulnerabilities to this broad entry; the root cause is usually a more specific weakness.
Architecture and Design · Separation of Privilege
Compartmentalize the system to have "safe" areas where trust boundaries can be unambiguously drawn. Do not allow sensitive data to go outside of the trust boundary and always be careful when interfacing with a compartment outside of the safe area.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Error Handling (opens in a new tab)
Logging (opens in a new tab)
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V8.3.4 (opens in a new tab)
V14.3.3 (opens in a new tab)
V7.3.3 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Subverting Environment Variable Values (opens in a new tab)
ICMP Echo Request Ping (opens in a new tab)
TCP SYN Scan (opens in a new tab)
Enumerate Mail Exchange (MX) Records (opens in a new tab)
DNS Zone Transfers (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 29 Oct 2026, 07:14 UTC

Public exploits and detection1 Metasploit module, GitHub proofs of concept

WeaknessesCWE-200

Technical details

References

Community reviews

Related threats