How severe is CVE-2018-20321?

CVE-2018-20321 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.8, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2018-20321 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (76th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2018-20321?

CVE-2018-20321 affects Suse Rancher. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2018-20321?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

When was CVE-2018-20321 published?

CVE-2018-20321 was published on 2019-04-10 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2018-20321

CVE-2018-20321 is a high-severity vulnerability in Suse Rancher with a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.8. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-668.

Key facts

Severity: High (CVSS 3.x base score 8.8)
CVSS v2: 9.0
EPSS exploit prediction: 2% (76th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-668
Affected product: Suse Rancher
Published: 2019-04-10
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

An issue was discovered in Rancher 2 through 2.1.5. Any project member with access to the default namespace can mount the netes-default service account in a pod, and then use that pod to execute administrative privileged commands against the k8s cluster. This could be mitigated by isolating the default namespace in a separate project, where only cluster admins can be given permissions to access. As of 2018-12-20, this bug affected ALL clusters created or imported by Rancher.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2018-20321?: An issue was discovered in Rancher 2 through 2.1.5. Any project member with access to the default namespace can mount the netes-default service account in a pod, and then use that pod to execute administrative privileged commands against the k8s cluster. This could be mitigated by isolating the default namespace in a separate project, where only cluster admins can be given permissions to access. As of 2018-12-20, this bug affected ALL clusters created or imported by Rancher.
How severe is CVE-2018-20321?: CVE-2018-20321 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.8, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2018-20321 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (76th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2018-20321?: CVE-2018-20321 affects Suse Rancher. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2018-20321?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2018-20321 published?: CVE-2018-20321 was published on 2019-04-10 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:suse:rancher:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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