CVE-2026-35204

HIGH

Helm 4.0.0-4.1.3 Plugin Metadata - Arbitrary File Write

Title source: manual
STIX 2.1

Exploitation Summary

EIP tracks 3 public exploits for CVE-2026-35204. PoCs published by amnsecurity, HORKimhab, h3ck13r.

AI-analyzed exploit summary This repository provides a functional proof-of-concept exploit for CVE-2026-35204, a path traversal vulnerability in Helm (versions 4.0.0-4.1.3) that allows arbitrary file writes via malicious plugin installation. The exploit generates a crafted Helm plugin with traversal sequences in plugin.yaml to write attacker-controlled payloads to arbitrary filesystem locations.

Description

Helm is a package manager for Charts for Kubernetes. From 4.0.0 to 4.1.3, a specially crafted Helm plugin, when installed or updated, will cause Helm to write the contents of the plugin to an arbitrary filesystem location. To prevent this, validate that the plugin.yaml of the Helm plugin does not include a version: field containing POSIX dot-dot path separators ie. "/../". This vulnerability is fixed in 4.1.4.

Exploits (3)

github WORKING POC 1 stars
by amnsecurity · pythonpoc
https://github.com/amnsecurity/CVE-2026-35204-Helm-Plugin-Traversal

This repository provides a functional proof-of-concept exploit for CVE-2026-35204, a path traversal vulnerability in Helm (versions 4.0.0-4.1.3) that allows arbitrary file writes via malicious plugin installation. The exploit generates a crafted Helm plugin with traversal sequences in plugin.yaml to write attacker-controlled payloads to arbitrary filesystem locations.

Classification
Working Poc 98%
Attack Type
Other
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Helm 4.0.0 - 4.1.3
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Helm installed on target system (v4.0.0-4.1.3) · Ability to install Helm plugins (user-level access sufficient)
mistral-large-3 · analyzed Jul 13, 2026 Full analysis →
github SUSPICIOUS
by HORKimhab · poc
https://github.com/HORKimhab/poc-cve-collection/tree/main/2026/35xxx/CVE-2026-35204.md

The repository contains only a markdown file describing CVE-2026-35204, a path traversal vulnerability in Helm's plugin metadata version field, but provides no actual exploit code. Instead, it links to external sources (GitHub repo and encrypted ZIP backup) for PoCs, which is a red flag for potential social engineering.

Classification
Suspicious 95%
Attack Type
Other
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Theoretical
Target: Helm 4.0.0 to 4.1.3
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Victim must install or update a malicious Helm plugin with crafted plugin.yaml · POSIX dot-dot path separators in the 'version' field
mistral-large-3 · analyzed Jul 13, 2026 Full analysis →
github STUB
by h3ck13r · poc
https://github.com/h3ck13r/CVE-2026-35204

The repository contains only a README.md and LICENSE file with no actual exploit code, technical details, or vulnerability analysis. It serves as a placeholder with no functional content.

Classification
Stub 95%
Attack Type
Other
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Theoretical
Target: unspecified
No auth needed
mistral-large-3 · analyzed Jul 08, 2026 Full analysis →

Scores

CVSS v3 8.6
EPSS 0.0020
EPSS Percentile 9.7%
Attack Vector LOCAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H

CISA SSVC

Vulnrichment
Exploitation none
Automatable no
Technical Impact partial

Details

CWE
CWE-22
Status published
Products (3)
helm/helm 4.0.0 - 4.1.4
helm/helm >= 4.0.0, < 4.1.4
helm/v4 4.0.0 - 4.1.4Go
Published Apr 09, 2026
Tracked Since Apr 09, 2026