CVE-2026-50163
Description
A flaw was found in oras-go, a Go library used for managing OCI (Open Container Initiative) artifacts. An attacker can exploit this vulnerability by providing a specially crafted tarball containing a malicious hardlink. When this tarball is extracted, the hardlink can be manipulated to point to files outside the intended extraction location, specifically within the victim's current working directory. This allows an attacker to read sensitive information from the system, and in some cases, could lead to unauthorized access to critical system files if the component is operating with elevated privileges.
Statement
A flaw was found in oras-go. The ensureLinkPath tar extraction helper validates that a hardlink's target resolves inside the extract base directory, but returns the original unresolved target string instead of the validated path. When os.Link() is called with a relative Linkname, it resolves against the process's current working directory (CWD), not the extract directory. An attacker controlling an OCI registry can craft a tarball layer with a malicious hardlink entry whose relative Linkname escapes the extract directory, creating a hardlink to arbitrary files in the victim's CWD. Exploitation requires the victim to run oras pull (or code using the oras-go file store) against an attacker-controlled registry with auto-extract enabled (io.deis.oras.content.unpack annotation set to true). In typical Red Hat deployments, container registries are curated and trusted, reducing the likelihood of exploitation. The resulting hardlink shares an inode with the target file, allowing the attacker to read its contents through the extracted archive.
Mitigation
Upgrade to oras-go v2.6.1 or later.
Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) Score Details
Info alert:Important note
CVSS scores for open source components depend on vendor-specific factors (e.g. version or build chain). Therefore, Red Hat's score and impact rating can be different from NVD and other vendors. Red Hat remains the authoritative CVE Naming Authority (CNA) source for its products and services (see Red Hat classifications).
CVSS v3 Score Breakdown
| Red Hat | NVD | cve.org | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Score | 5.9 | N/A | 7.1 |
| Attack Vector | Network | N/A | Network |
| Attack Complexity | High | N/A | Low |
| Privileges Required | None | N/A | None |
| User Interaction | Required | N/A | Required |
| Scope | Unchanged | N/A | Unchanged |
| Confidentiality | High | N/A | High |
| Integrity Impact | Low | N/A | Low |
| Availability Impact | None | N/A | None |
Vector
Red Hat: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N
cve.org: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N
Red Hat CVSS v3 Score Explanation
AC:L→H: exploitation requires victim to pull from an attacker-controlled OCI registry with auto-extract enabled. In typical RH deployments, registries are curated and trusted, reducing exploitability.
Understanding the Weakness (CWE)
Integrity,Confidentiality,Availability
Technical Impact: Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands
The attacker may be able to create or overwrite critical files that are used to execute code, such as programs or libraries.
Integrity
Technical Impact: Modify Files or Directories
The attacker may be able to overwrite or create critical files, such as programs, libraries, or important data. If the targeted file is used for a security mechanism, then the attacker may be able to bypass that mechanism. For example, appending a new account at the end of a password file may allow an attacker to bypass authentication.
Confidentiality
Technical Impact: Read Files or Directories
The attacker may be able read the contents of unexpected files and expose sensitive data. If the targeted file is used for a security mechanism, then the attacker may be able to bypass that mechanism. For example, by reading a password file, the attacker could conduct brute force password guessing attacks in order to break into an account on the system.
Availability
Technical Impact: DoS: Crash, Exit, or Restart
The attacker may be able to overwrite, delete, or corrupt unexpected critical files such as programs, libraries, or important data. This may prevent the product from working at all and in the case of protection mechanisms such as authentication, it has the potential to lock out product users.
Frequently Asked Questions
Not sure what something means? Check out our Security Glossary.
Want to get errata notifications? Sign up here.
