High File handling

CVE-2026-13622 — Kubevirt: virt-handler-rhel9: kubevirt: virt-handler migration proxy follows symlinks allowing container escape to host

A symlink following vulnerability was found in KubeVirt's virt-handler migration proxy. During live migration, virt-handler dials Unix sockets inside the target virt-launcher pod via /proc/<pid>/root/ paths using net.Dial() without symlink protection. These socket paths reside in qemu-owned directories writable by the virt-launcher user. An attacker with namespace edit and pods/exec permissions can replace a migration proxy socket with a symlink to the host CRI-O socket. Because virt-handler runs as root in the host mount namespace, absolute symlink targets resolve against the host filesystem, and the bidirectional io.Copy proxy relays attacker-controlled bytes to the container runtime, enabling full node compromise.

Published Aug 12, 2026 · Updated Oct 15, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP · CNA: redhat

Low

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.

How the score was calculated

EPSS 0.2% (30-day exploitation probability)+1
Technical severity (high)+6

The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).

Triage

Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.

Exploitation

Not confirmed

Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.

EPSS FIRST

0.2%

ahead of 9% of scored CVEs · Oct 15, 2026

Affects

Red Hat

Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.12 and 10 more

CVSS base

8.8

High · 2 source(s)

CISA SSVC assessment CISA

Three decision points CISA publishes for the CVEs it assesses (SSVC 2.0.3). A stakeholder decision, not a severity score.

Exploitation

None

none · proof-of-concept · active

Automatable

can an attacker script the kill-chain steps

Technical impact

Total

partial · total control of the vulnerable component

Remediation

Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.

No fix documented by the sources we poll. That does not mean none exists: check the vendor advisory.

First 24 hours

Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.

Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Red Hat Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.12, Red Hat Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.13, Red Hat Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.14…).
No fix documented in the sources: reduce exposure and monitor the vendor advisory.
Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (file handling), errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

Vendor	Product	Versions	Status	Source
Red Hat	Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.12	versions not specified by the source	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Red Hat	Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.13	versions not specified by the source	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Red Hat	Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.14	versions not specified by the source	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Red Hat	Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.15	versions not specified by the source	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Red Hat	Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.16	versions not specified by the source	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Red Hat	Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.17	versions not specified by the source	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Red Hat	Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.18	versions not specified by the source	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Red Hat	Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.19	versions not specified by the source	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Red Hat	Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.20	versions not specified by the source	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Red Hat	Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.21	versions not specified by the source	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Red Hat	Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.22	versions not specified by the source	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector

Local

Attack complexity

Low

Privileges required

Low

User interaction

None

Scope

Changed

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

High

Every base score collected

Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.

Score	Version	Severity	Expl.	Impact	Scored by
8.8	CVSS 3.1	High	2.0	6.0	secalert@redhat.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database
8.8	CVSS 3.1	High	—	—	redhat via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H (score shown at the top: secalert@redhat.com)

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-22 · Path Traversal

Other CVEs with this weakness →

Detection

Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.

Local/physical vector: focus on endpoint telemetry (EDR) from affected hosts.
Monitor file creation in web directories and paths with traversal sequences (../).

endpoint telemetry (EDR)file integrity (FIM)

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

2026
Affected products added · red hat/red hat container native virtualization 4.12, red hat/red hat container native virtualization 4.13, red hat/red
Oct 15, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
SSVC assessment updated
Oct 15, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Record published
Oct 15, 2026
CVSS changed · 8.8
Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Source status changed · → Awaiting Analysis
Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Record created in this database
Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
CVE published
Aug 12, 2026 · redhat

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

1× Official description updated · Oct 15, 2026 – Oct 15, 2026

References

13 on the record

access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:53655
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:51031
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:53838
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:53826
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:53671
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-13622
vdb-entry, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:53763
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:53728
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:53721
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:53797
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:53684
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi
issue-tracking, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHEA-2026:53670
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database

Elsewhere on this site

Red Hat
every CVE for this vendor

File handling
same class

CWE-22
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

High CVE-2026-17527 Virt-cdi-operator: containerized-data-importer: cdi.kubevirt.io:view aggregated clusterrole grants create on datavolumes/source, allowing unauthorized pvc clone Jul 27, 2026
High CVE-2026-13201 Kubevirt: virt-handler-rhel9: kubevirt: safepath symlink following in virt-handler enables notify socket hijacking and node-level vm disruption Jun 24, 2026
High CVE-2026-9804 Kubevirt: kubevirt: vmexport directory symlink escape enables exporter pod file read May 28, 2026
Critical CVE-2026-7374 Kubevirt: kubevirt virt-handler: privilege escalation and node compromise via symlink following vulnerability May 26, 2026

Not in any source we poll

Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.

No fixed version, patch or mitigation documented.
No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.

Answered from this record

Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.

What should defenders know first?

CVE-2026-13622 is "Kubevirt: virt-handler-rhel9: kubevirt: virt-handler migration proxy follows symlinks allowing container escape to host", rated High. It affects Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.12 (Red Hat); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 8.8 describes technical severity. EPSS 0.20% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.

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