High File handling

CVE-2026-9804 — Kubevirt: kubevirt: vmexport directory symlink escape enables exporter pod file read

A flaw was found in KubeVirt's virt-exportserver component. An attacker with specific namespace-level access can exploit a path traversal vulnerability in the VMExport directory endpoint. By placing a symbolic link (symlink) within an exported filesystem Persistent Volume Claim (PVC) that points outside its designated mount root, the attacker can read arbitrary files from the exporter pod's filesystem. This leads to information disclosure, potentially exposing sensitive data.

Published May 28, 2026 · Updated Oct 13, 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 0.7% (30-day exploitation probability)+8
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

0.72%

ahead of 53% of scored CVEs · Oct 14, 2026

Affects

Red Hat

Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.17 and 5 more

CVSS base

7.7

High · 3 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

Partial

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 4.17, Red Hat Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.18, Red Hat Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.19…).
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 4.17	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 OpenShift Virtualization 4	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

Network

Attack complexity

Low

Privileges required

Low

User interaction

None

Scope

Changed

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

None

Availability

None

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
7.7	CVSS 3.1	High	3.1	4.0	secalert@redhat.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database
7.7	CVSS 3.1	High	3.1	4.0	0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c via NIST National Vulnerability Database
7.7	CVSS 3.1	High	—	—	redhat via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

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

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-59 · Link Following

Other CVEs with this weakness →

EPSS over time FIRST

Oct 13, 2026 → Oct 14, 2026 · 2 reading(s) · max 0.72%

Detection

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

Prioritize edge telemetry for the network-reachable component (proxy, WAF, IDS/IPS).
Monitor file creation in web directories and paths with traversal sequences (../).

web/proxy/WAF logsnetwork IDS/IPSfile integrity (FIM)endpoint telemetry (EDR)

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

2026
Affected products added · red hat/red hat container native virtualization 4.17, red hat/red hat container native virtualization 4.18, red hat/red
Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
SSVC assessment updated
Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Record published
Oct 13, 2026
CVSS changed · 7.7
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Source status changed · → Awaiting Analysis
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Record created in this database
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
CVE published
May 28, 2026 · redhat

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

1× Official description updated · Oct 13, 2026 – Oct 13, 2026

References

8 on the record

security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-9804.json
NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:27914
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:27903
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-9804
vdb-entry, 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/RHSA-2026:27983
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:27913
vendor-advisory, x_refsource_REDHAT, NIST National Vulnerability Database
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:28002
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-59
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

Medium CVE-2026-13434 Virt-controller-rhel9: kubevirt: kubevirt: multus default-network annotation injection via unvalidated tenant networkname when externalnetresourceinjection is enabled Jun 26, 2026
Medium CVE-2026-13218 Kubevirt: kubevirt: symlink following in writetocachedfile allows host file overwrite from virt-launcher Jun 25, 2026
Medium CVE-2026-13318 Virt-api-rhel9: kubevirt: kubevirt: ssrf in virt-api port-forward via unvalidated guest-agent-reported ip Jun 25, 2026
Low CVE-2026-13322 Kubevirt: virt-handler-rhel9: kubevirt: unbounded virtio-serial readline in virt-handler causes oom denial of service Jun 25, 2026
Medium CVE-2026-13208 Kubevirt: virt-handler-rhel9: kubevirt: virt-handler notify server trusts vmi identity from unauthenticated grpc request body Jun 24, 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

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-2026-9804 is "Kubevirt: kubevirt: vmexport directory symlink escape enables exporter pod file read", rated High. It affects Red Hat Container Native Virtualization 4.17 (Red Hat); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 7.7 describes technical severity. EPSS 0.72% 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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