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ContainerdApplication · Linuxfoundation

CVE-2026-53492

CRITICAL · 9.6 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-07-01
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.1.9 / 2.2.5 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable Zero-click 8 weeks old

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
containerd is an open-source container runtime. In Versions prior to 2.3.2, 2.2.5 and 2.1.9, the CRI implementation improperly trusts Container Device Interface (CDI) annotations found within untrusted checkpoint image metadata during container restoration. When restoring a container from a checkpoint, containerd preserves CDI-related annotations from the checkpoint archive rather than relying solely on the pod's create-time specification. This allows a user with pod creation permissions to bypass standard Kubernetes resource allocation and device plugin enforcement, injecting arbitrary CDI edits (such as device nodes and host mounts) into the restored container. Successful exploitation requires that the node has CDI enabled and contains a matching host CDI specification for the requested device; environments where CDI is disabled or lacking sensitive device specifications are not affected. This issue has been fixed in versions 2.3.2, 2.2.5 and 2.1.9.

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

containerd's CRI implementation improperly trusts CDI annotations from untrusted checkpoint image metadata during container restoration. This allows users with pod creation permissions to inject arbitrary CDI edits (device nodes, host mounts) into restored containers, bypassing Kubernetes resource allocation and device plugin enforcement. Exploitation requires CDI to be enabled on the node with matching host CDI specifications.

MitigationUpgrade containerd to versions 2.3.2, 2.2.5, or 2.1.9. Alternatively, disable CDI or ensure no sensitive device specifications exist on nodes, and restrict pod creation permissions to trusted users.

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
ContainerdApplication
Affected:>= 2.1.0, < 2.1.9>= 2.2.0, < 2.2.5>= 2.3.0, < 2.3.2

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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/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. Check containerd version
    Run `containerd --version` or check the version file in your containerd installation directory
    Affected if Version is 2.1.0-2.1.8, 2.2.0-2.2.4, or 2.3.0-2.3.1 (falls within >=2.1.0 <2.1.9, >=2.2.0 <2.2.5, or >=2.3.0 <2.3.2)
  2. Verify CDI is enabled
    Check containerd configuration file (typically /etc/containerd/config.toml) for the CDI enable flag or look for CDI-related settings under the containerd runtime configuration
    Affected if CDI support is enabled in the containerd configuration (cdi.enabled or similar setting is true)
  3. Confirm checkpoint/restore is in use
    Inspect container runtime data or check for existing containers that were restored from checkpoints, or review audit logs for container restore operations
    Affected if Checkpoint and restore functionality is being used to restore containers from checkpoint images on this node
  4. Check for CDI device specifications
    Examine the /etc/cdi or /var/lib/cdi directories for JSON device specification files, or run `ls /etc/cdi/` to list available CDI specifications
    Affected if CDI device specifications exist on the node that could be injected into restored containers

A user is affected if containerd version is in the vulnerable range, CDI is enabled, and checkpoint restore is being used with CDI device specifications present on the node.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 2.1.9 / 2.2.5 / 2.3.2 or later
Fixed in 2.1.92.2.52.3.2
Interim mitigation

Upgrade containerd to versions 2.3.2, 2.2.5, or 2.1.9. Alternatively, disable CDI or ensure no sensitive device specifications exist on nodes, and restrict pod creation permissions to trusted users.

Recommended fix High confidence

containerd 2.3.2 (or 2.2.5 for 2.2.x branch, or 2.1.9 for 2.1.x branch)

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed containerd version using `containerd --version` or checking the package manager
  2. 2. Determine which branch of containerd is in use (2.1.x, 2.2.x, or 2.3.x) based on the current version
  3. 3. For containerd 2.1.x: Upgrade to version 2.1.9 or later
  4. 4. For containerd 2.2.x: Upgrade to version 2.2.5 or later
  5. 5. For containerd 2.3.x: Upgrade to version 2.3.2 or later
  6. 6. Upgrade method depends on installation method: for package managers use `apt-get update && apt-get install containerd` or `yum update containerd`; for binary installations download from the containerd releases page (github.com/containerd/containerd/releases)
  7. 7. After upgrade, restart the containerd service using `systemctl restart containerd` or `service containerd restart`
  8. 8. Verify the new version is running with `containerd --version`
Caveat Patch upgrades typically have minimal breaking changes; however, test container restore functionality in a non-production environment first

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

Fix this in Containerd Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation6.0 h
  • Implementation16.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
34.0 hours of engineering $6,000
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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-2026-53492 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
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