runc is a CLI tool for spawning and running containers on Linux according to the OCI specification. In runc 1.1.11 and earlier, due to an internal file descriptor leak, an attacker could cause a newly-spawned container process (from runc exec) to have a working directory in the host filesystem namespace, allowing for a container escape by giving access to the host filesystem ("attack 2"). The same attack could be used by a malicious image to allow a container process to gain access to the host filesystem through runc run ("attack 1"). Variants of attacks 1 and 2 could be also be used to overwrite semi-arbitrary host binaries, allowing for complete container escapes ("attack 3a" and "attack 3b"). runc 1.1.12 includes patches for this issue.
This vulnerability affects an unusually large number of packages. The highest-confidence fixes are shown above; the full list is longer. Check the referenced advisories for complete coverage.
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Remediation is compiled from vendor and distribution security advisories. Always confirm against the linked source for your exact version and platform.
CVSS v3 Vector
Exploitability
Attack VectorLocal
Attack ComplexityLow
Privileges RequiredNone
User InteractionRequired
ScopeChanged
Impact
ConfidentialityHigh
IntegrityHigh
AvailabilityHigh
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
Exploit Intelligence
18.09%probability of exploitation in 30 days
97thpercentile
Very high risk: more likely to be exploited than 97% of all known CVEs.
Published advisories record a fix for 521 affected products. The "How to fix" section on this page lists the fixed version and source advisory for each one, so apply the entry matching what you actually run.
Is CVE-2024-21626 being actively exploited?
Not that we know of. CVE-2024-21626 is not in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. Its EPSS score of 18.1% is the estimated probability that it will be exploited in the next 30 days. That is higher than 97% of all scored CVEs.
How severe is CVE-2024-21626?
CVE-2024-21626 has a CVSS v3 base score of 8.6, rated high. CVSS rates the technical impact if the vulnerability is exploited, not how likely that is, so weigh it alongside the exploit-prediction score when you decide what to patch first.
What does CVE-2024-21626 affect?
Published advisories record a fix for runc (Debian), aardvark-dns-2:1.0.1 (Rocky), aardvark-dns-2:1.0.1 (Red Hat / RHEL), aardvark-dns-2:1.5.0 (Red Hat / RHEL), and 517 more. The list on this page is capped, so there may be more.
TridentStack Control continuously scans your Windows, macOS, and Linux fleet for known vulnerabilities, prioritizes them by severity and active exploitation, and patches them automatically.
This product uses NVD data but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS scores courtesy of FIRST.org (https://www.first.org/epss). Source: CISA KEV Catalog. Data as of 2026-08-24.