CVE-2025-23266

CRITICAL

NVIDIA Container Toolkit < 1.17.8 - Untrusted Search Path via Container Initialization Hooks

Title source: llm
STIX 2.1

Exploitation Summary

EIP tracks 6 public exploits for CVE-2025-23266. PoCs published by jpts, mrk336, r0binak.

AI-analyzed exploit summary This PoC exploits CVE-2025-23266, a vulnerability in NVIDIA's AI software, by leveraging a constructor function to execute arbitrary code during library loading. It writes system information to a file named '/hacked' as a demonstration of the exploit's effectiveness.

Description

NVIDIA Container Toolkit for all platforms contains a vulnerability in some hooks used to initialize the container, where an attacker could execute arbitrary code with elevated permissions. A successful exploit of this vulnerability might lead to escalation of privileges, data tampering, information disclosure, and denial of service.

Exploits (6)

nomisec WORKING POC 13 stars
by jpts · poc
https://github.com/jpts/cve-2025-23266-poc

This PoC exploits CVE-2025-23266, a vulnerability in NVIDIA's AI software, by leveraging a constructor function to execute arbitrary code during library loading. It writes system information to a file named '/hacked' as a demonstration of the exploit's effectiveness.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Lpe
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: NVIDIA AI software (specific version not specified)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Docker environment with NVIDIA runtime · Access to the target system to run the Docker container
mistral-large-3 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WRITEUP 2 stars
by mrk336 · poc
https://github.com/mrk336/CVE-2025-23266

The repository describes a buffer overflow vulnerability (CVE-2025-23266) in FastAPI's `parse_request()` function, allowing remote code execution via crafted HTTP headers. The writeup outlines the exploit flow, mitigation steps, and monitoring recommendations but does not include actual exploit code.

Classification
Writeup 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Theoretical
Target: FastAPI v2.4.3
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target running FastAPI v2.4.3 on Ubuntu 22.04 · Network access to the target
mistral-large-3 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 1 stars
by r0binak · poc
https://github.com/r0binak/CVE-2025-23266

This PoC exploits CVE-2025-23266 in the NVIDIA Container Toolkit by leveraging a shared library (evil.so) to escape container network namespaces and establish a reverse shell. The exploit uses LD_PRELOAD to execute arbitrary commands with elevated privileges.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: NVIDIA Container Toolkit (version not specified)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Access to a container with the vulnerable NVIDIA Container Toolkit · Ability to load a shared library (LD_PRELOAD)
mistral-large-3 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 1 stars
by Mindasy · poc
https://github.com/Mindasy/cve-2025-23266-migration-bypass

This PoC exploits CVE-2025-23266 by using a shared library (poc.so) with a constructor payload to copy a flag file from the host to a Docker container's mounted directory. It demonstrates a migration bypass vulnerability likely related to container escape or privilege escalation.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Lpe
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Docker (specific version not specified)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Ability to load a shared library in the target environment · Docker container with mounted directory access
mistral-large-3 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WRITEUP
by CR1MS0N-Operator · poc
https://github.com/CR1MS0N-Operator/security-research

This repository contains a detailed technical analysis of CVE-2025-23266, focusing on the NVIDIA Container Toolkit's hook isolation failures under rootless Podman with runc. It includes root cause analysis, patch diffs, and lab results for environment variable inheritance in the createContainer hook.

Classification
Writeup 100%
Attack Type
Lpe
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: NVIDIA Container Toolkit (v1.17.5 - v1.17.7)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: rootless Podman with runc · GPU-enabled container · compromised container image or workload
mistral-large-3 · analyzed Jun 22, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WRITEUP
by ForeverLX · poc
https://github.com/ForeverLX/security-research

This repository contains a detailed technical analysis of container boundary vulnerabilities, specifically focusing on CVE-2025-23266 in the NVIDIA Container Toolkit. It includes research methodology, findings, and MITRE ATT&CK mappings, but no functional exploit code.

Classification
Writeup 95%
Attack Type
Other
Complexity
Complex
Reliability
Theoretical
Target: NVIDIA Container Toolkit
No auth needed
Prerequisites: rootless Podman with runc · NVIDIA Container Toolkit
mistral-large-3 · analyzed Apr 13, 2026 Full analysis →

Scores

CVSS v3 9.0
EPSS 0.0254
EPSS Percentile 83.3%
Attack Vector ADJACENT_NETWORK
CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H

CISA SSVC

Vulnrichment
Exploitation none
Automatable no
Technical Impact total

Details

CWE
CWE-426
Status published
Products (6)
NVIDIA/Container Toolkit NVIDIA Container Toolkit All versions up to and including 1.17.7 (CDI mode only for versions prior t
NVIDIA/Container Toolkit NVIDIA GPU Operator All versions up to and including 25.3.0 (CDI mode only for versions prior to 25.
NVIDIA/gpu-operator 0 - 25.3.2Go
NVIDIA/k8s-device-plugin 0 - 0.17.3Go
NVIDIA/mig-parted 0 - 0.12.2Go
NVIDIA/nvidia-container-toolkit 0 - 1.17.8Go
Published Jul 17, 2025
Tracked Since Feb 18, 2026