CVE-2026-96812 Host Root Sandbox Escape in gVisor via Character Device Passthrough and CUSE
A local attacker with container deployment privileges can escape the gVisor sandbox to execute root code on the host via CUSE device passthrough.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Any signed-in user
- Attackable
- Local or same network only
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- None listed
What is CVE-2026-96812?
CVE-2026-96812 is a high-severity vulnerability in Google gVisor, published on 25 Sep 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Official description
Improper Exposure of Resource to Wrong Sphere in the host file helper (gofer) in Google gVisor prior to commit 573a9e73cf844f on Linux platforms with CUSE enabled allows a local attacker with container image deployment privileges to achieve root code execution on the host system. By including a /dev/cuse character device node in a container image, opening the device passes through to the host, allowing the sandboxed attacker to register a host device and exploit CUSE unrestricted ioctl handling to overwrite root udev helper memory.
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-96812?
How do I fix CVE-2026-96812?
No fix has been published for CVE-2026-96812 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.
Is CVE-2026-96812 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-96812 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as DEBIAN-CVE-2026-96812, GHSA-3chr-j932-q9pc.