How severe is GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw?

GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw has a CVSS score of 8.1/10, rated HIGH. Immediate patching is strongly recommended.

Which packages are affected by GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw?

GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw affects the following packages: github.com/containers/podman/v5 (Go), github.com/containers/podman/v4 (Go). Ecosystems affected: Go.

How do I fix GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw?

Update github.com/containers/podman/v5 to 5.6.1 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw in my Go dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/containers/podman/v5, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.

How do I mitigate GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

Resolve every user-supplied path to its canonical form and reject anything that escapes the intended directory, and run the component under an account that has no read or write access outside the directory it legitimately serves.

Is GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw 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 GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw?

GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 1.2%, placing it in the 69th 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 GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw?

GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw is classified as Path Traversal (CWE-22). This weakness type describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation. This is a high-impact weakness class that often enables remote code execution or data exposure.

When was GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw published, and has it been updated?

GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw was published on September 4, 2025 and was last updated on November 3, 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

HIGH severity

podman kube play symlink traversal vulnerabilityGHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw

HIGHFix: containers/podman@43fbde4

GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw is a high-severity (CVSS 8.1) Path Traversal vulnerability in github.com/containers/podman/v5. A fix is available for github.com/containers/podman/v5 — see the affected versions and patch details below.

Also known asCVE-2025-9566GO-2025-3935

Published

Sep 4, 2025

Updated

Nov 3, 2026

Affected

2 pkgs

Patched

1 / 2

Exploits

None indexed

Exploitation data as of Nov 9, 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 GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw.

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

1.2%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk+0.05%

Lower risk than most CVEs69th percentile — riskier than 69% of all scored CVEsHighest risk

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

How urgent is this, really

Where this sits among everything scored

Real-World Exposure

2 pkgs affected

🐹github.com/containers/podman/v5🐹github.com/containers/podman/v4

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

The podman kube play command can overwrite host files when the kube file contains a ConfigMap or Secret volume mount and the volume already contains a symlink to a host file. This allows a malicious container to write to arbitrary files on the host BUT the attacker only controls the target path not the contents that will be written to the file. The contents are defined in the yaml file by the end user.

Requirements to exploit:

podman kube play must be used with a ConfigMap or Secret volume mount AND must be run more than once on the same volume. All the attacker has to do is create the malicious symlink on the volume the first time it is started. After that all following starts would follow the symlink and write to the host location.

Patches

Fixed in podman v5.6.1 https://github.com/containers/podman/commit/43fbde4e665fe6cee6921868f04b7ccd3de5ad89

Workarounds

Don't use podman kube play with ConfigMap or Secret volume mounts.

PR with test for CI

Adding on 9/8/2025 by @TomSweeneyRedHat , this is the PR containing the test in CI: https://github.com/containers/podman/pull/27001

Affected Packages

2 total 1 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
🐹Go	`github.com/containers/podman/v5`	all versions	5.6.1`go get github.com/containers/podman/v5@v5.6.1`
🐹Go	`github.com/containers/podman/v4`	all versions	No fix

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/containers/podman/v5, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/containers/podman/v5 to 5.6.1 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Resolve every user-supplied path to its canonical form and reject anything that escapes the intended directory, and run the component under an account that has no read or write access outside the directory it legitimately serves.

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 HatImportant

The Red Hat Product Security team has evaluated this vulnerability as having the Important severity. This happens because of the consequences of an successful attack and the low complexity (AC:L) on exploiting this vulnerability. Although the attacker cannot control the content written to the target file, depending on…

Workaround published by Red Hat

Red Hat advises to not run the podman kube play command with untrusted Kubernetes YAML file as input, additionally review the Kubernetes YAML file before running it through podman may help to catch maliciously crafted secretes or volumes that may be used to exploit this vulnerability.

Source: Red Hat security advisory for GHSA-wp3j-xq48-xpjw (CC BY 4.0)

Product	Fixed in	Advisory
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10	`podman-6:5.4.0-13.el10_0`	RHSA-2025:15901
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10	`podman-7:5.6.0-5.el10_1`	RHSA-2025:20983
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10	`podman-7:5.8.0-2.el10`	RHSA-2026:18289
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8	`container-tools:rhel8-8100020250911075811.afee755d`	RHSA-2025:15904
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.6 Advanced Mission Critical Update Support	`container-tools:rhel8-8060020250919150821.3b538bd8`	RHSA-2025:16482
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.8 Telecommunications Update Service	`container-tools:rhel8-8080020250919060528.0f77c1b7`	RHSA-2025:16515
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9	`podman-5:5.4.0-13.el9_6`	RHSA-2025:15900
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9	`podman-6:5.6.0-6.el9_7`	RHSA-2025:20909

Frequently Asked Questions

### Impact The podman kube play command can overwrite host files when the kube file contains a ConfigMap or Secret volume mount and the volume already contains a symlink to a host file. This allows a malicious container to write to arbitrary files on the host BUT the attacker only controls the target path not the contents that will be written to the file. The contents are defined in the yaml file by the end user. ### Requirements to exploit: podman kube play must be used with a ConfigMap or Secret volume mount AND must be run more than once on the same volume. All the attacker has to do is c

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