How severe is CVE-2021-32760?

CVE-2021-32760 has a CVSS score of 6.3/10, rated MEDIUM. Review your exposure and patch according to your risk tolerance.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2021-32760?

CVE-2021-32760 affects the following packages: github.com/containerd/containerd (Go), github.com/containerd/containerd (Go). Ecosystems affected: Go.

How do I fix CVE-2021-32760?

Update github.com/containerd/containerd to 1.4.8 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2021-32760 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect CVE-2021-32760 in my Go dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/containerd/containerd, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.

How do I mitigate CVE-2021-32760 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.

Is CVE-2021-32760 actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for CVE-2021-32760 yet. This does not mean the vulnerability cannot be exploited — absence of public exploits does not imply safety. Apply the recommended fix and use O3 Security to monitor your exposure.

What is the EPSS score for CVE-2021-32760?

CVE-2021-32760 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 1.6%, placing it in the 75th percentile of all CVEs. EPSS is maintained by FIRST.org and estimates the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. This score indicates relatively lower exploitation probability, though the CVSS severity should still guide your patching priority.

What type of vulnerability is CVE-2021-32760?

CVE-2021-32760 is classified as CWE-668 (CWE-668), CWE-732 (CWE-732). These weakness types describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation.

When was CVE-2021-32760 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2021-32760 was published on July 19, 2021 and was last updated on July 8, 2026. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

🐹

🐹 Go

Not in CISA KEV

MEDIUM severity

CVE-2021-32760 — containerd

MEDIUMFix: containerd/containerd@22e9a70

CVE-2021-32760 is a medium-severity (CVSS 6.3) CWE-668 vulnerability in github.com/containerd/containerd. A fix is available for github.com/containerd/containerd — see the affected versions and patch details below.

Archive package allows chmod of file outside of unpack target directory

Also known asGHSA-c72p-9xmj-rx3wGO-2022-0921

Published

Jul 19, 2021

Updated

Jul 8, 2026

Affected

2 pkgs

Patched

2 / 2

Exploits

None indexed

Exploitation data as of Oct 10, 2026 · OSV.dev, NVD, FIRST.org (EPSS)

Exploitation Status

No confirmed exploitation observed yet

CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.

Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2021-32760.

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

1.6%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk0.00%

Lower risk than most CVEs75th percentile — riskier than 75% of all scored CVEsHighest risk

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.

How urgent is this, really

CVE-2021-32760 by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). Outside the shaded patch-first corner.

Where this sits among everything scored

Of 385,738 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Counts from FIRST.org, log-scaled.

Real-World Exposure

2 pkgs affected

🐹github.com/containerd/containerd🐹github.com/containerd/containerd

Real-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Go packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.

Description

Impact

A bug was found in containerd where pulling and extracting a specially-crafted container image can result in Unix file permission changes for existing files in the host’s filesystem. Changes to file permissions can deny access to the expected owner of the file, widen access to others, or set extended bits like setuid, setgid, and sticky. This bug does not directly allow files to be read, modified, or executed without an additional cooperating process.

Patches

This bug has been fixed in containerd 1.5.4 and 1.4.8. Users should update to these versions as soon as they are released. Running containers do not need to be restarted.

Workarounds

Ensure you only pull images from trusted sources.

Linux security modules (LSMs) like SELinux and AppArmor can limit the files potentially affected by this bug through policies and profiles that prevent containerd from interacting with unexpected files.

For more information

If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:

Open an issue
Email us at [email protected] if you think you’ve found a security bug.

Affected Packages

2 total 2 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
🐹Go	`github.com/containerd/containerd`	all versions	1.4.8`go get github.com/containerd/containerd@v1.4.8`
🐹Go	`github.com/containerd/containerd`	≥ 1.5.0&&< 1.5.4	1.5.4`go get github.com/containerd/containerd@v1.5.4`

Affected Products

2 products · 3 configurations

fedorafedoraproject

1 version

Application

containerdlinuxfoundation

≥ 1.5.0 && < 1.5.4

range

Detection & mitigation playbook

Open-source dependency

Detect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/containerd/containerd, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/containerd/containerd to 1.4.8 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2021-32760 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.

Fixing This On Your OS

If you run this on a Linux distribution, patch through your package manager against the distro's own security advisory below — it tracks the exact backported fix for your release, which can ship on a different timeline (and sometimes a different severity) than the upstream project.

Red HatModerate

Product	Fixed in	Advisory
Red Hat OpenShift Service Mesh 2.4 for RHEL 8	`openshift-service-mesh/grafana-rhel8:2.4.4-2`	RHSA-2023:5952
Red Hat OpenStack Platform 16.2	`rhosp-rhel8-tech-preview/osp-director-operator:1.2.3-2`	RHSA-2022:2183

Frequently Asked Questions

## Impact A bug was found in containerd where pulling and extracting a specially-crafted container image can result in Unix file permission changes for existing files in the host’s filesystem. Changes to file permissions can deny access to the expected owner of the file, widen access to others, or set extended bits like setuid, setgid, and sticky. This bug does not directly allow files to be read, modified, or executed without an additional cooperating process. ## Patches This bug has been fixed in containerd 1.5.4 and 1.4.8. Users should update to these versions as soon as they are rele