# CVE-2026-34177: VM lowlevel restriction bypass via raw.apparmor and raw.qemu.conf

> Attackers with edit permissions can bypass VM restrictions to escalate privileges to host root via AppArmor and QEMU config injection.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.1 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 9 Apr 2026
- **Updated:** 9 Apr 2026
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2026-34177, GHSA-fm2x-c5qw-4h6f, GO-2026-5368, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-34177

## What is CVE-2026-34177?

CVE-2026-34177 is a critical vulnerability in Canonical lxd, published on 9 Apr 2026. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Canonical LXD versions 4.12 through 6.7 contain an incomplete denylist in isVMLowLevelOptionForbidden (lxd/project/limits/permissions.go), which omits raw.apparmor and raw.qemu.conf from the set of keys blocked under the restricted.virtual-machines.lowlevel=block project restriction. A remote attacker with can_edit permission on a VM instance in a restricted project can inject an AppArmor rule and a QEMU chardev configuration that bridges the LXD Unix socket into the guest VM, enabling privilege escalation to LXD cluster administrator and subsequently to host root.

Weakness: CWE-184 (Incomplete List of Disallowed Inputs)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-34177?

3 open source packages ship an affected version, including github.com/canonical/lxd. It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `github.com/canonical/lxd` | Go | From 0.0.0-20210305023314-538ac3df036e | None |
| `github.com/canonical/lxd` | Go | From 0.0.0-20210305023314-538ac3df036e to 0.0.0-20260226085519-736f34afb267 | None |
| `github.com/canonical/lxd` | Go | From 0.0.0-20210305023314-538ac3df036e to 0.0.0-20260226085519-736f34afb267 | None |

Products: Canonical Lxd.

## How do I fix CVE-2026-34177?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-34177 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2026-34177 exists.

## Other vulnerabilities in Canonical lxd

- [CVE-2026-66897](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-66897/): Instance template path traversal allows arbitrary host file write as root (critical 9.9)
- [CVE-2026-62420](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-62420/): Cross-project cluster migration bypasses project restrictions via cluster notification flag (critical 9.9)
- [CVE-2026-63293](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-63293/): Arbitrary File Read/Write: metadata.yaml symlink in image allows host filesystem access as root (critical 9.9)
- [CVE-2026-63294](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-63294/): Root RCE via image backup.yaml symlink (critical 9.9)
- [CVE-2026-63296](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-63296/): Project restriction bypass via instance migration config override (critical 9.9)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-34177 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-34177 is a critical vulnerability in Canonical lxd, published on 9 Apr 2026. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2026-34177 exists.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- github.com/canonical/lxd (Go): affected from 0.0.0-20210305023314-538ac3df036e; no fix listed
- github.com/canonical/lxd (Go): affected from 0.0.0-20210305023314-538ac3df036e up to 0.0.0-20260226085519-736f34afb267; no fix listed
- github.com/canonical/lxd (Go): affected from 0.0.0-20210305023314-538ac3df036e up to 0.0.0-20260226085519-736f34afb267; no fix listed

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-34177/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-34177/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-34177
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-34177
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-34177

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-34177/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.