CVE-2026-22039: Kyverno server-side request forgery (SSRF) (CVSS 9.9)

Description

Kyverno is a policy engine designed for cloud native platform engineering teams. Versions prior to 1.16.3 and 1.15.3 have a critical authorization boundary bypass in namespaced Kyverno Policy apiCall. The resolved `urlPath` is executed using the Kyverno admission controller ServiceAccount, with no enforcement that the request is limited to the policy’s namespace. As a result, any authenticated user with permission to create a namespaced Policy can cause Kyverno to perform Kubernetes API requests using Kyverno’s admission controller identity, targeting any API path allowed by that ServiceAccount’s RBAC. This breaks namespace isolation by enabling cross-namespace reads (for example, ConfigMaps and, where permitted, Secrets) and allows cluster-scoped or cross-namespace writes (for example, creating ClusterPolicies) by controlling the urlPath through context variable substitution. Versions 1.16.3 and 1.15.3 contain a patch for the vulnerability.

CVSS 3.1 breakdown

Attack vectorNetwork

Attack complexityLow

Privileges requiredLow

User interactionNone

ScopeChanged

ConfidentialityHigh

IntegrityHigh

AvailabilityHigh

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected products

Kyverno≥ 1.16.0 < 1.16.3 · < 1.15.3

Remediation

Fixed in

Kyverno≥ 1.16.3

Patch & vendor advisories

References

https://github.com/kyverno/kyverno/commit/e0ba4de4f1e0ca325066d5095db51aec45b1407bPatch
https://github.com/kyverno/kyverno/commit/eba60fa856c781bcb9c3be066061a3df03ae4e3ePatch
https://github.com/kyverno/kyverno/security/advisories/GHSA-8p9x-46gm-qfx2ExploitMitigationVendor Advisory

Related CVEs

Recent high-severity vulnerabilities sharing a weakness type.

Frequently asked

Is CVE-2026-22039 being actively exploited?

CVE-2026-22039 is not in the CISA KEV catalog. A public exploit reference exists, so treat it as exploitable. Its EPSS exploit probability is 0.58%.

How severe is CVE-2026-22039?

CVE-2026-22039 has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.9, rated critical. EPSS estimates a 0.58% probability of exploitation.

Which products are affected by CVE-2026-22039?

Affected products include Kyverno.

How do I fix CVE-2026-22039?

Upgrade affected software to a fixed version, for example Kyverno 1.16.3 or later, then confirm no affected versions remain in your inventory.

How Secuno handles this

Secuno correlates vulnerabilities like CVE-2026-22039 against the real software inventory on every managed device, as each hourly inventory arrives. Rather than a static severity, each match is scored in context: exploit availability, EPSS, the asset's exposure, and business criticality decide where it lands in the queue. If an affected version is present anywhere across your portfolio, it surfaces automatically with a prioritised remediation path.

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