CVE-2026-23954
HIGHIncus container image templating arbitrary host file read and write
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
Blast Radius
github.com/lxc/incus/v6/cmd/incusdReal-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
Incus is a system container and virtual machine manager. Versions 6.21.0 and below allow a user with the ability to launch a container with a custom image (e.g a member of the ‘incus’ group) to use directory traversal or symbolic links in the templating functionality to achieve host arbitrary file read, and host arbitrary file write. This ultimately results in arbitrary command execution on the host. When using an image with a metadata.yaml containing templates, both the source and target paths are not checked for symbolic links or directory traversal. This can also be exploited in IncusOS. A fix is planned for versions 6.0.6 and 6.21.0, but they have not been released at the time of publication.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/lxc/incus/v6/cmd/incusd | all versions | No fix |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/lxc/incus/v6/cmd/incusd. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Remediation status
No patched version of github.com/lxc/incus/v6/cmd/incusd has shipped for CVE-2026-23954 yet. Where your build allows, override or pin the dependency away from the vulnerable range, and apply any maintainer-recommended mitigation.
Mitigate without a patch
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.
How O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether CVE-2026-23954 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to CVE-2026-23954. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2026-23954 in your dependencies?
O3 detects CVE-2026-23954 across Go dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.