CVE-2026-95837
Received Received - Intake

Privilege Escalation in Containerd via CRI Checkpoint Restore

Publication date: 2026-10-12

Last updated on: 2026-10-12

Assigner: GitHub, Inc.

Description
containerd is an open-source container runtime. From 2.1.0 until 2.2.7 and 2.3.4, containerd's CRI CreateContainer checkpoint restore is vulnerable because CRIU restores process security state from checkpoint data instead of enforcing the destination ContainerConfig. An attacker who can create a container from a crafted checkpoint can supply restored credentials, capabilities, no_new_privs, and seccomp state. The restored process can run as root with full capabilities and no enforced seccomp filters while CRI status reports the requested configuration. Systems that do not use CRI checkpoint restore are not affected. This issue is fixed in versions 2.2.7 and 2.3.4.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-10-12
Last Modified
2026-10-12
Generated
2026-10-13
AI Q&A
2026-10-12
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-95837
EUVD
EUVD-2026-97820

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 2 associated CPEs
Vendor Product Version / Range
containerd containerd >= 2.1.0, < 2.2.7
containerd containerd >= 2.3.0, < 2.3.4

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-269 The product does not properly assign, modify, track, or check privileges for an actor, creating an unintended sphere of control for that actor.

Attack-Flow Graph

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Executive Summary

CVE-2026-95837 is a vulnerability in containerd's Container Runtime Interface (CRI) where checkpoint restore via the CreateContainer API allows bypassing security contexts. CRIU restores process credentials, capabilities, and seccomp state from checkpoint data instead of enforcing the destination ContainerConfig. This enables privilege escalation, such as running as root with full capabilities, even when restrictive policies are requested.

Detection Guidance

To detect this vulnerability, check if your containerd version is between 2.1.0 and 2.2.7 or 2.3.4. Run: containerd --version. If using CRI checkpoint restore, verify if restore via CreateContainer is enabled by checking containerd config.toml for enable_experimental_restore_via_create=true.

Impact Analysis

An attacker with access to create containers from crafted checkpoints could gain elevated privileges, bypass security policies, and execute processes as root with unrestricted capabilities. Systems using CRI checkpoint restore are affected; others are not. The vulnerability allows hiding privilege escalation from orchestrators due to misleading CRI status reporting.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could lead to unauthorized privilege escalation and privilege abuse, violating data protection and access control requirements in GDPR and HIPAA. Unrestricted root access and disabled seccomp filters may expose sensitive data or systems to compromise, risking non-compliance with security and privacy controls.

Mitigation Strategies

Upgrade containerd to versions 2.2.7, 2.3.4, or 2.4.0+. If using older versions, disable checkpoint restore via CreateContainer by default. Restrict container creation to trusted users and validate container images. Stop and recreate containers restored from untrusted checkpoints.

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