InstructlabApplication · Redhat
CVE-2026-6855
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 · uneditedA flaw was found in InstructLab. A local attacker could exploit a path traversal vulnerability in the chat session handler by manipulating the `logs_dir` parameter. This allows the attacker to create new directories and write files to arbitrary locations on the system, potentially leading to unauthorized data modification or disclosure.
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 · moderate confidenceA path traversal vulnerability exists in InstructLab's chat session handler where the `logs_dir` parameter is not properly sanitized, allowing a local attacker to manipulate it with traversal sequences (e.g., '../') to create directories and write files to arbitrary locations on the system, leading to potential unauthorized data modification or disclosure.
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
InstructlabApplication
all versions
Enterprise Linux AiOperating system
= 3.0CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify if InstructLab is installedRun 'pip show instructlab' or check for the package in your Python environment using 'pip list | grep -i instructlab'Affected if The package is present on the system
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Determine the installed InstructLab versionRun 'pip show instructlab' and look at the Version field, or use 'instructlab --version' if the CLI is availableAffected if Any version of Redhat Instructlab is installed (all versions are affected)
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Check for RHEL AI installationRun 'rpm -qa | grep -i instructlab' or check for the rhel-ai package with 'rpm -qa | grep -i rhel.*ai'Affected if Redhat Enterprise Linux Ai version 3.0 is installed
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Verify if chat session logging is configuredLook for configuration files or environment variables that set 'logs_dir' parameter. Check ~/.config/instructlab/config.yml or /etc/instructlab/ for logging-related settings containing 'logs_dir'Affected if A logs_dir parameter is configured for chat session handling, as the vulnerability requires this parameter to be present and user-controllable
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Check chat session logs directory permissionsInspect the configured logs directory path. If logs_dir allows relative paths or traverses outside intended directories, the vulnerability is exploitable. Search for recent directory creation events in unexpected paths using 'find / -newermm [timestamp] -type d 2>/dev/null' if root access is availableAffected if The logs_dir can be set to a path containing '../' sequences or points outside the intended logs directory
If InstructLab or RHEL AI version 3.0 is installed and the chat session handler's logs_dir parameter is configurable, the environment is affected by this path traversal vulnerability.
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.
From vendor dataImplement strict input validation and sanitization on the `logs_dir` parameter to reject path traversal sequences and restrict file/directory creation to intended safe paths.
Fix this in Instructlab
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,728.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-6855 — 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-2026-6855 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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