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NVD / CVE Program· CNA GitHub_M

CVE-2023-26484: On a compromised KubeVirt node, the virt-handler service account can be used to modify all node specs

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 32/100)

  • The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.61% (FIRST EPSS).
  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it. A low-privileged account is enough. No user action is required. Special conditions such as timing or configuration are required.
  • Fixed version: Azure Linux 3.0 ARM 1.2.0-1; Azure Linux 3.0 x64 1.2.0-1; CBL Mariner 2.0 ARM 0.59.0-20.

Low priority for now. Upgrade to Azure Linux 3.0 ARM 1.2.0-1; Azure Linux 3.0 x64 1.2.0-1; CBL Mariner 2.0 ARM 0.59.0-20 or later.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS

KubeVirt is a virtual machine management add-on for Kubernetes. In versions 0.59.0 and prior, if a malicious user has taken over a Kubernetes node where virt-handler (the KubeVirt node-daemon) is running, the virt-handler service account can be used to modify all node specs. This can be misused to lure-in system-level-privileged components which can, for instance, read all secrets on the cluster, or can exec into pods on other nodes. This way, a compromised node can be used to elevate privileges beyond the node until potentially having full privileged access to the whole cluster. The simplest way to exploit this, once a user could compromise a specific node, is to set with the virt-handler service account all other nodes to unschedulable and simply wait until system-critical components with high privileges appear on its node. No patches are available as of time of publication. As a workaround, gatekeeper users can add a webhook which will block the `virt-handler` service account to modify the spec of a node.

HighCVSS 8.2 · v3.1—No exploit Fix available
Published
Mar 15, 2023
Updated
Jun 17, 2026
EPSS
0.6% · 49th percentile

Report tools

JSON

Action score

32

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
32 / 40 · 8.2 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.6%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
none
Automatable
no
Technical impact
total

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

CNA vs NVD score

NVD
8.2
CNA · GitHub_M
8.2
agree

The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.

Get told when this record changes

  • Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
  • No public exploit code on record
  • A fix has been released

If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.

Follow CVE-2023-26484

When you'll hear from us

  • when it enters CISA KEV
  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
  • when the record is updated (including a fixed version)
  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

VendorProduct
kubevirtkubevirt

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • kubevirt kubevirtup to 0.59.0 inclusive

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (GitHub_M). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • kubevirt kubevirt

    • <= 0.59.0affected

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Gokubevirt.io/kubevirtup to and including 0.59.0—
openSUSE:Leap Micro 5.3kubevirtbefore 0.54.0-150400.3.13.10.54.0-150400.3.13.1
openSUSE:Tumbleweedkubevirtbefore 0.59.0-2.10.59.0-2.1
openSUSE:Tumbleweedkubevirt-1.8before 1.8.3-1.11.8.3-1.1
openSUSE:Tumbleweedkubevirt1.8before 1.8.3-1.11.8.3-1.1
SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3kubevirtbefore 0.54.0-150400.3.13.10.54.0-150400.3.13.1

Same product

kubevirt: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2020-14316A flaw was found in kubevirt 0.29 and earlier.
    39Monitor
  • CVE-2025-64324KubeVirt Vulnerable to Arbitrary Host File Read and Write
    34Monitor
  • CVE-2026-13201Kubevirt: virt-handler-rhel9: kubevirt: safepath symlink following in virt-handler enables notify socket hijacking and node-level vm disruption
    29Monitor

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2020-1701May 27, 2021 · A flaw was found in the KubeVirt main virt-handler versions before 0.26.0 regarding the access permissions of virt-handler.
    26Monitor
  • ← EarlierCVE-2022-1798Sep 15, 2022 · Path Traversal vulnerability in Kubevirt
    26Monitor
  • Later →CVE-2024-33394May 2, 2024 · An issue in kubevirt kubevirt v1.2.0 and before allows a local attacker to execute arbitrary code via a crafted command to get the token com
    23Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
Azure Linux 3.0 ARM1.2.0-1 · kubevirtMicrosoft (MSRC)
Azure Linux 3.0 x641.2.0-1 · kubevirtMicrosoft (MSRC)
CBL Mariner 2.0 ARM0.59.0-20 · kubevirtMicrosoft (MSRC)
CBL Mariner 2.0 x640.59.0-20 · kubevirtMicrosoft (MSRC)
opensuse:kubevirt0.54.0-150400.3.13.1 · openSUSE:Leap Micro 5.3Package registry (OSV)
opensuse:kubevirt-1.81.8.3-1.1 · openSUSE:TumbleweedPackage registry (OSV)
opensuse:kubevirt1.81.8.3-1.1 · openSUSE:TumbleweedPackage registry (OSV)
suse:kubevirt0.54.0-150400.3.13.1 · SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3Package registry (OSV)

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

No dated events beyond publication.

No history yet (it accumulates with the daily EPSS job).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
  • A low-privileged account is enough.
  • No user action is required.
  • Special conditions such as timing or configuration are required.

If successful

Confidentiality
high · data can be read
Integrity
high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability
none

Impact can extend beyond the vulnerable component (scope changes).

Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
High
Privileges required
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality impact
High
Integrity impact
High
Availability impact
None

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-863 · Incorrect Authorization

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N

nvd-primary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.

Change log

  1. Fix✗ → ✓

For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →

References

Show all references (1 more)

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records