Vulnerability in Containerd
CVE-2026-50195
containerd is an open-source container runtime. Versions prior to 2.3.2, 2.2.5 and 2.1.9 contain a vulnerability in the CRI checkpoint import process where it fails to validate the image references specified within a checkpoint image's configuration. An attacker with permissions to create pods can use a crafted checkpoint image to force containerd to pull a malicious image and assign it an arbitrary local tag, thereby poisoning the node's local image cache. Subsequently, if other pods on the same node attempt to use the poisoned tag with an IfNotPresent (or Never) pull policy, they will unknowingly execute the attacker's malicious image instead of the legitimate one. This can lead to a compromise of the affected pods, allowing the attacker to execute arbitrary code under the victim pod's identity. This issue has been fixed in versions 2.3.2, 2.2.5 and 2.1.9.
Published · last modified .
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 9.9 (Critical). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H.
EPSS exploit prediction
EPSS: 0.003 (20.8th percentile), scored .
Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 21st percentile — 20.8% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.
EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.003 · newest: 0.003 · change: 0.000
Affected products
- Containerd — versions >= 2.1.0, < 2.1.9, >= 2.2.0, < 2.2.5, >= 2.3.0, < 2.3.2
- Linuxfoundation Containerd
Weakness classification (CWE)
References
- github.com/containerd/containerd/security/advisories/GHSA-cvxm-645q-p574 (Mitigation, Vendor Advisory)
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2026-50195?
- CVE-2026-50195 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Containerd, classified under Insufficient Verification of Data Authenticity. CVSS score: 9.9/10. Published 2026-07-01.
- How severe is CVE-2026-50195?
- Critical severity. CVSS v3 base score is 9.9 out of 10.