How severe is CVE-2026-53493?

No CVSS score has been assigned to CVE-2026-53493 yet. Review the advisory details and affected package list to assess your exposure.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2026-53493?

CVE-2026-53493 affects the following packages: github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 (Go), github.com/containerd/containerd (Go), github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 (Go), github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 (Go), github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 (Go). Ecosystems affected: Go.

How do I fix CVE-2026-53493?

Update github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 to 2.0.13 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2026-53493 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect CVE-2026-53493 in my Go dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/containerd/containerd/v2, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.

How do I mitigate CVE-2026-53493 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

Cap what an attacker can consume: apply request size, rate and timeout limits in front of the affected component, and run it with memory and CPU limits so exhaustion degrades one worker rather than the whole service.

Is CVE-2026-53493 actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for CVE-2026-53493 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-2026-53493?

CVE-2026-53493 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 0.4%, placing it in the 28th 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-2026-53493?

CVE-2026-53493 is classified as Uncontrolled Resource Consumption (CWE-400), CWE-770 (CWE-770), CWE-834 (CWE-834). These weakness types describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation.

When was CVE-2026-53493 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2026-53493 was published on September 25, 2026 and was last updated on October 21, 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

CVE-2026-53493 — containerd

Fix: containerd/containerd@4f5f326

CVE-2026-53493 is a Uncontrolled Resource Consumption vulnerability in github.com/containerd/containerd/v2. A fix is available for github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 — see the affected versions and patch details below.

Containerd has image-pull DoS via crafted OCI index graph amplification

Also known asGHSA-pg57-6jwg-q645GO-2026-6597

Published

Sep 25, 2026

Updated

Oct 21, 2026

Affected

5 pkgs

Patched

5 / 5

Exploits

None indexed

Exploitation data as of Oct 22, 2026 · OSV.dev, NVD, FIRST.org (EPSS)

Exploitation Status

No confirmed exploitation observed yet

CISA assesses this as automatable — exploitation doesn’t require manual, per-target effort, which raises the odds of mass scanning and opportunistic attacks.
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-2026-53493.

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

0.4%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk0.00%

Lower risk than most CVEs28th percentile — riskier than 28% of all scored CVEsHighest risk

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

Real-World Exposure

5 pkgs affected

🐹github.com/containerd/containerd/v2🐹github.com/containerd/containerd🐹github.com/containerd/containerd/v2🐹github.com/containerd/containerd/v2🐹github.com/containerd/containerd/v2

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 vulnerability exists in containerd's image pull handlers where a crafted OCI image index containing deeply nested or heavily fanned-out descriptor graphs can cause unbounded CPU and memory consumption. During the PullImage operation, the recursive traversal and processing of child descriptors lack sufficient depth and breadth limits, and fail to adequately deduplicate identical descriptors. This unbounded traversal leads to excessive resource allocation.

Consequently, pulling a malicious image reference can result in prolonged stalls during container creation and significant resource pressure on the host system. This issue occurs entirely during the image pull phase, prior to any container execution.

Patches

This bug has been fixed in containerd 2.4.1, 2.3.6, 2.2.9, 2.0.13, and 1.7.36. Users should update to these versions to resolve the issue.

Workarounds

There are no known workarounds for this issue. Users are advised to only pull trusted images from known registries until the patch can be applied.

Credits

The containerd project would like to thank Jakub Ciolek at ElevenLabs and @jlgore who independently discovered and responsibly disclosed this issue in accordance with the containerd security policy.

For more information

If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:

Open an issue in containerd
Email us at [email protected]

To report a security issue in containerd:

Report a new vulnerability
Email us at [email protected]

Affected Packages

5 total 5 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
🐹Go	`github.com/containerd/containerd/v2`	≥ 2.0.0&&< 2.0.13	2.0.13`go get github.com/containerd/containerd/v2@v2.0.13`
🐹Go	`github.com/containerd/containerd`	all versions	1.7.36`go get github.com/containerd/containerd@v1.7.36`
🐹Go	`github.com/containerd/containerd/v2`	≥ 2.1.0&&< 2.2.9	2.2.9`go get github.com/containerd/containerd/v2@v2.2.9`
🐹Go	`github.com/containerd/containerd/v2`	≥ 2.3.0&&< 2.3.6	2.3.6`go get github.com/containerd/containerd/v2@v2.3.6`
🐹Go	`github.com/containerd/containerd/v2`	≥ 2.4.0&&< 2.4.1	2.4.1`go get github.com/containerd/containerd/v2@v2.4.1`

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/v2, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/containerd/containerd/v2 to 2.0.13 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2026-53493 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Cap what an attacker can consume: apply request size, rate and timeout limits in front of the affected component, and run it with memory and CPU limits so exhaustion degrades one worker rather than the whole service.

Frequently Asked Questions

### Impact A vulnerability exists in containerd's image pull handlers where a crafted OCI image index containing deeply nested or heavily fanned-out descriptor graphs can cause unbounded CPU and memory consumption. During the `PullImage` operation, the recursive traversal and processing of child descriptors lack sufficient depth and breadth limits, and fail to adequately deduplicate identical descriptors. This unbounded traversal leads to excessive resource allocation. Consequently, pulling a malicious image reference can result in prolonged stalls during container creation and significant r

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

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