dbcve.org
Link Following (Symlink)Weakness · CWE-59

CVE-2026-2808

MEDIUM · 6.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-03-12
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
74/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
HashiCorp Consul and Consul Enterprise 1.18.20 up to 1.21.10 and 1.22.4 are vulnerable to arbitrary file read when configured with Kubernetes authentication. This vulnerability, CVE-2026-2808, is fixed in Consul 1.18.21, 1.21.11 and 1.22.5.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

HashiCorp Consul and Consul Enterprise contain an arbitrary file read vulnerability when configured with Kubernetes authentication. An attacker with access to the Kubernetes authentication mechanism could potentially read sensitive files on the Consul host system. The vulnerability affects versions 1.18.20 through 1.21.10 and 1.22.4.

MitigationUpgrade Consul to version 1.18.21, 1.21.11, or 1.22.5 to patch the arbitrary file read vulnerability in Kubernetes authentication. Organizations using Kubernetes auth should prioritize this upgrade given the medium-severity CVSS score.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Determine Consul installation and version
    Run 'consul --version' or check the Consul binary path to identify the installed version
    Affected if The version falls within 1.18.20 to 1.21.10, or is exactly 1.22.4
  2. Identify if Kubernetes authentication is enabled
    Examine Consul configuration files (usually in /etc/consul/ or defined via environment variables) for the 'kubernetes' auth method configuration in the 'auth_method' or 'acl' settings
    Affected if Kubernetes authentication method is configured and enabled in Consul configuration
  3. Verify the Kubernetes auth method configuration details
    Review the auth method configuration block for 'type: kubernetes' to confirm the specific authentication mechanism in use
    Affected if The auth method type is set to 'kubernetes' enabling this attack surface

Your environment is affected if Consul is version 1.18.20-1.21.10 or 1.22.4 AND Kubernetes authentication is enabled in your Consul configuration.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade Consul to version 1.18.21, 1.21.11, or 1.22.5 to patch the arbitrary file read vulnerability in Kubernetes authentication. Organizations using Kubernetes auth should prioritize this upgrade given the medium-severity CVSS score.

Recommended fix High confidence

Consul 1.18.21, 1.21.11, or 1.22.5 (or later stable release)

  1. 1. Backup your current Consul configuration files and data directory before proceeding with the upgrade.
  2. 2. Download the fixed Consul version (1.18.21, 1.21.11, or 1.22.5) from the official HashiCorp releases page (https://www.consul.io/downloads).
  3. 3. If running in a Kubernetes environment, update your Helm chart or Kubernetes manifests to specify the new Consul version image tag.
  4. 4. For Kubernetes authentication: ensure your Consul Kubernetes auth method configuration is properly secured and follows HashiCorp best practices.
  5. 5. Restart Consul services to apply the new version.
  6. 6. Verify the Consul version is correct by running `consul version` and checking that the Kubernetes auth method is functioning properly.

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,130
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,408.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-2808 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-2808 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data