CVE-2021-43816
CVSS v3
9.1
CRITICAL
EPSS Score
1.7 %
exploit probability, as of 2026-09-25
CISA KEV
No
known exploited
Exploitation
—
SSVC status
Description
containerd is an open source container runtime. On installations using SELinux, such as EL8 (CentOS, RHEL), Fedora, or SUSE MicroOS, with containerd since v1.5.0-beta.0 as the backing container runtime interface (CRI), an unprivileged pod scheduled to the node may bind mount, via hostPath volume, any privileged, regular file on disk for complete read/write access (sans delete). Such is achieved by placing the in-container location of the hostPath volume mount at either `/etc/hosts`, `/etc/hostname`, or `/etc/resolv.conf`. These locations are being relabeled indiscriminately to match the container process-label which effectively elevates permissions for savvy containers that would not normally be able to access privileged host files. This issue has been resolved in version 1.5.9. Users are advised to upgrade as soon as possible.
Technical details
- Published
- 2022-01-05
Frequently asked questions
What is CVE-2021-43816?
containerd is an open source container runtime. On installations using SELinux, such as EL8 (CentOS, RHEL), Fedora, or SUSE MicroOS, with containerd since v1.5.0-beta.0 as the backing container runtime interface (CRI), an unprivileged pod scheduled to the node may bind mount, via hostPath volume, any privileged, regular file on disk for complete read/write access (sans delete). Such is achieved by placing the in-container location of the hostPath volume mount at either `/etc/hosts`, `/etc/hostname`, or `/etc/resolv.conf`. These locations are being relabeled indiscriminately to match the container process-label which effectively elevates permissions for savvy containers that would not normally be able to access privileged host files. This issue has been resolved in version 1.5.9. Users are advised to upgrade as soon as possible.
Is CVE-2021-43816 actively exploited?
Active exploitation of CVE-2021-43816 has not been confirmed. Its EPSS score was 1.7% on 2026-09-25, the estimated probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What is the CVSS score for CVE-2021-43816?
CVE-2021-43816 has a CVSS v3 base score of 9.1 (CRITICAL severity).
Is CVE-2021-43816 affecting your environment?
Use isMalicious to check if any of your IPs or domains are associated with this vulnerability's IOCs.
No credit card required · 500 free checks/month · Free API key
Other 2021 vulnerabilities worth triaging
Ranked by exploit probability (EPSS).