CVE-2026-44210
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 · uneditedKata Containers is an open source project focusing on a standard implementation of lightweight Virtual Machines (VMs) that perform like containers. Versions prior to 3.31.0 ship with a default configuration that allows pod creators to inject arbitrary command-line arguments into the virtiofsd process through the `io.katacontainers.config.hypervisor.virtio_fs_extra_args` pod annotation. By injecting `-o source=/` along with `--no-announce-submounts` and `--sandbox=none`, an attacker can override the virtiofsd shared directory to serve the entire host root filesystem into the guest VM. Combined with the `kernel_params` annotation (also enabled by default) to activate the agent debug console, the attacker can mount the host filesystem from inside the VM and read or write any file on the host, including /etc/shadow. Version 3.31.0 patches the issue.
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 confidenceKata Containers versions prior to 3.31.0 ship with a default configuration that permits pod creators to inject arbitrary arguments into the virtiofsd process via the `io.katacontainers.config.hypervisor.virtio_fs_extra_args` pod annotation. By specifying `-o source=/` combined with `--no-announce-submounts` and `--sandbox=none`, attackers can override the virtiofsd shared directory to expose the entire host root filesystem to the guest VM. When chained with the `kernel_params` annotation to enable the agent debug console, this allows full read/write access to any host file including /etc/shadow, achieving host compromise.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data< 3.31.0CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check installed Kata Containers versionRun `kata-runtime --version` or check the version of the kata-containers-runtime package installed via your package manager (e.g., `dpkg -l | grep kata`, `rpm -qa | grep kata`)Affected if The installed version is prior to 3.31.0 (e.g., 3.0.0 through 3.30.x)
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Locate default Kata Containers configurationFind the default configuration file, typically at /usr/share/defaults/kata-containers/configuration.toml or /etc/kata-containers/configuration.toml, or check /opt/kata*/share/defaults/kata-containers/configuration.tomlAffected if A default configuration file exists and is in use
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Inspect virtio_fs_extra_args configurationOpen the default configuration file and search for entries under [hypervisor] or io.katacontainers.config.hypervisor sections containing virtio_fs_extra_args, or check for annotation allowlists that permit io.katacontainers.config.hypervisor.virtio_fs_extra_argsAffected if virtio_fs_extra_args is not commented out, is set to a non-empty value, or the annotation is whitelisted in the default config
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Inspect kernel_params annotation configurationSearch the default configuration file for kernel_params settings or annotation allowlists that permit io.katacontainers.config.kernel.kernel_paramsAffected if kernel_params annotation is not disabled or is whitelisted in the default config allowing arbitrary kernel parameter injection
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Determine annotation injection exposureVerify whether untrusted pods can be scheduled in the cluster with the ability to set these annotations. Check if the Kubernetes Admission Controller or RuntimeClass restricts these specific annotationsAffected if Untrusted workloads can apply pods with custom annotations without restriction, and either virtio_fs_extra_args or kernel_params is enabled in the default configuration
You are affected if running Kata Containers version prior to 3.31.0 with the virtio_fs_extra_args or kernel_params annotations enabled in the default configuration, and untrusted pods can inject these annotations.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 · scoped3.31.0
Upgrade to Kata Containers version 3.31.0 or later to obtain the patch. As a compensating control, disable the `virtio_fs_extra_args` and `kernel_params` annotations in the Kata Containers configuration if upgrading is not immediately feasible.
3.31.0
- Verify current Kata Containers version by checking the runtime, shim, and proxy components
- Update the Kata Containers packages to version 3.31.0 using the package manager (e.g., apt-get update && apt-get install kata-containers or equivalent)
- Ensure all Kata Containers components (runtime, shim, proxy, agent) are updated to version 3.31.0
- Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the version of the Kata runtime
- If using a Kubernetes cluster, restart pods using Kata Containers to ensure they run on the patched version
- Confirm the virtio_fs_extra_args annotation is no longer accepted by default (optional validation step)
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-44210 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-44210 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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