CVE-2025-64437Public exploit

Host file ownership changes via symlinked launcher socket

Published Nov 7, 2025 · Updated Nov 7, 2025

Link following in KubeVirt before 1.5.3 and from 1.6.0-alpha.0 through 1.6.0 allows local users to change arbitrary host-file ownership. The socket-based isolation detector follows an attacker-replaced launcher-sock symlink when deriving the virt-launcher root mount, allowing host-disk creation to change a symlink-targeted file's owner to UID 107. Exploitation requires control of a virt-launcher pod filesystem, host access as the qemu user, unprivileged user namespaces, and a successful race during VMI creation or update.

CVSS severity5.0
Medium
EPSS probability0.21%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Link following in KubeVirt before 1.5.3 and from 1.6.0-alpha.0 through 1.6.0 allows local users to change arbitrary host-file ownership. The socket-based isolation detector follows an attacker-replaced launcher-sock symlink when deriving the virt-launcher root mount, allowing host-disk creation to change a symlink-targeted file's owner to UID 107. Exploitation requires control of a virt-launcher pod filesystem, host access as the qemu user, unprivileged user namespaces, and a successful race during VMI creation or update.

The record

CVE
CVE-2025-64437
Published
Nov 7, 2025
Updated
Nov 7, 2025
Vendor
KubeVirt
Product
KubeVirt
Classifications
CWE-59, T1611
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Nov 7, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Nov 7, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=< 1.5.3
  2. Affected versionversion=>= 1.6.0-alpha.0, < 1.6.1

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

KubeVirt · KubeVirtversion=< 1.5.3; version=>= 1.6.0-alpha.0, < 1.6.1

Published CVSS scores

5.0GitHub, Inc.CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:L

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 9, 2026Sep 15, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 15, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-59Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')
T1611Escape to Host

Public exploit references

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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