CVE-2026-53493
Received Received - Intake

Denial of Service in containerd OCI Index Graph

Publication date: 2026-09-25

Last updated on: 2026-09-25

Assigner: GitHub, Inc.

Description
containerd is an open-source container runtime. Prior to versions 1.7.36, 2.0.13, 2.2.9, 2.3.6, and 2.4.1, a crafted OCI index graph can force very high CPU/memory usage during PullImage (before container start), causing long ContainerCreating stalls and, at larger sizes, node/runtime instability. Versions 1.7.36, 2.0.13, 2.2.9, 2.3.6, and 2.4.1 fix the issue.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-09-25
Last Modified
2026-09-25
Generated
2026-09-25
AI Q&A
2026-09-25
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-53493
EUVD
EUVD-2026-86486

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 5 associated CPEs
Vendor Product Version / Range
containerd containerd to 1.7.36 (exc)
containerd containerd From 2.0.0 (exc) to 2.0.12 (inc)
containerd containerd From 2.1.0 (exc) to 2.2.8 (inc)
containerd containerd From 2.3.0 (exc) to 2.3.5 (inc)
containerd containerd From 2.4.0 (exc) to 2.4.1 (inc)

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-400 The product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource.
CWE-770 The product allocates a reusable resource or group of resources on behalf of an actor without imposing any intended restrictions on the size or number of resources that can be allocated.
CWE-834 The product performs an iteration or loop without sufficiently limiting the number of times that the loop is executed.

Attack-Flow Graph

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Executive Summary

CVE-2026-53493 is a denial-of-service vulnerability in containerd's image pull handlers. It occurs when a malicious OCI image index contains deeply nested or heavily branched descriptor graphs, causing unbounded CPU and memory consumption during the PullImage operation. The issue stems from insufficient depth and breadth limits in recursive traversal of child descriptors and inadequate deduplication of identical descriptors.

Detection Guidance

To detect this vulnerability, check your containerd version using 'containerd --version'. If it is below 1.7.36, 2.0.13, 2.2.9, 2.3.6, or 2.4.1, your system is vulnerable. Monitor CPU and memory usage during image pulls for unusual spikes.

Impact Analysis

This vulnerability can cause prolonged container creation stalls due to high CPU and memory usage during image pulls. In severe cases, it may destabilize the host system or runtime, leading to node instability. The attack happens entirely during the image pull phase before any container execution.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could impact compliance with GDPR and HIPAA by enabling denial-of-service attacks that disrupt containerized services, potentially leading to unauthorized resource consumption or service unavailability. Such disruptions may violate availability requirements in GDPR Article 32 and HIPAA Security Rule standards for ensuring access to protected health information.

Mitigation Strategies

Immediately update containerd to version 1.7.36, 2.0.13, 2.2.9, 2.3.6, or 2.4.1 or later. Avoid pulling images from untrusted registries until patched.

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