CVE-2026-53492
CVE-2026-53492 is a Improper Input Validation vulnerability in github.com/containerd/containerd/v2. O3 Security confirms whether CVE-2026-53492 is actually reachable in your code before you act, and blocks exploitation at runtime until you patch.
containerd CRI checkpoint restore CDI annotation smuggling
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-2026-53492.
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.
Real-World Exposure
github.com/containerd/containerd/v2🐹github.com/containerd/containerd/v2🐹github.com/containerd/containerd/v2Real-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
containerd is an open-source container runtime. In Versions prior to 2.3.2, 2.2.5 and 2.1.9, the CRI implementation improperly trusts Container Device Interface (CDI) annotations found within untrusted checkpoint image metadata during container restoration. When restoring a container from a checkpoint, containerd preserves CDI-related annotations from the checkpoint archive rather than relying solely on the pod's create-time specification. This allows a user with pod creation permissions to bypass standard Kubernetes resource allocation and device plugin enforcement, injecting arbitrary CDI edits (such as device nodes and host mounts) into the restored container. Successful exploitation requires that the node has CDI enabled and contains a matching host CDI specification for the requested device; environments where CDI is disabled or lacking sensitive device specifications are not affected. This issue has been fixed in versions 2.3.2, 2.2.5 and 2.1.9.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 | ≥ 2.1.0&&< 2.1.9 | 2.1.9 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 | ≥ 2.2.0&&< 2.2.5 | 2.2.5 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 | ≥ 2.3.0&&< 2.3.2 | 2.3.2 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/containerd/containerd/v2. 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.
Fix
Update github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 to 2.1.9 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2026-53492 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.
How O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether CVE-2026-53492 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-2026-53492. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
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.
This flaw is rated as Important. In Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform, a user with pod creation permissions could bypass standard Kubernetes resource allocation and device plugin enforcement. This is due to containerd's Container Runtime Interface (CRI) improperly trusting Container Device Interface (CDI)…
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2026-53492 in your dependencies?
O3 detects CVE-2026-53492 across Go dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.