CVE-2024-21626

CVE-2024-21626 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linuxfoundation Runc with a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.6. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score of 18% places it in the 97th percentile, indicating an elevated likelihood of exploitation. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-403.

Key facts

Description

runc is a CLI tool for spawning and running containers on Linux according to the OCI specification. In runc 1.1.11 and earlier, due to an internal file descriptor leak, an attacker could cause a newly-spawned container process (from runc exec) to have a working directory in the host filesystem namespace, allowing for a container escape by giving access to the host filesystem ("attack 2"). The same attack could be used by a malicious image to allow a container process to gain access to the host filesystem through runc run ("attack 1"). Variants of attacks 1 and 2 could be also be used to overwrite semi-arbitrary host binaries, allowing for complete container escapes ("attack 3a" and "attack 3b"). runc 1.1.12 includes patches for this issue.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2024-21626?
runc is a CLI tool for spawning and running containers on Linux according to the OCI specification. In runc 1.1.11 and earlier, due to an internal file descriptor leak, an attacker could cause a newly-spawned container process (from runc exec) to have a working directory in the host filesystem namespace, allowing for a container escape by giving access to the host filesystem ("attack 2"). The same attack could be used by a malicious image to allow a container process to gain access to the host filesystem through runc run ("attack 1"). Variants of attacks 1 and 2 could be also be used to overwrite semi-arbitrary host binaries, allowing for complete container escapes ("attack 3a" and "attack 3b"). runc 1.1.12 includes patches for this issue.
How severe is CVE-2024-21626?
CVE-2024-21626 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.6, rated high severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2024-21626 being actively exploited?
It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 18% (97th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2024-21626?
CVE-2024-21626 primarily affects Linuxfoundation Runc. In total, 2 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2024-21626?
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.
Does CVE-2024-21626 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?
Yes. CVE-2024-21626 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2024-0459.
When was CVE-2024-21626 published?
CVE-2024-21626 was published on 2024-01-31 and last updated on 2026-06-30.

References

Affected products (2)

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