Path Traversal in Canonical Lxd
CVE-2026-66897
A path traversal vulnerability in LXD's instance template processing allows an attacker with container edit permissions, or any user launching a crafted image, to overwrite arbitrary files on the host system as root. When processing target template paths specified in metadata.yaml, LXD validates the path against a confined os.Root directory handle but subsequently opens and creates the file using os.Create with an unconfined string path. This discrepancy between path resolution checks and file creation allows an attacker to escape directory confinement, overwrite root-owned host files, and achieve host root code execution.
Vulnerability class: Path Traversal (Directory Traversal)
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.
Affected products
Weakness classification (CWE)
References
- security@ubuntu.com (vendor-advisory, vdb-entry)
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2026-66897?
- CVE-2026-66897 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Canonical Lxd, classified under Path Traversal. CVSS score: 9.9/10. Published 2026-08-24.
- How severe is CVE-2026-66897?
- Critical severity. CVSS v3 base score is 9.9 out of 10.