# CVE-2026-121885: Podman auto-update untrusted image label processing DoS

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-121885-a-flaw-was-found-in-podman-an-attacker-can-trigger-a-denial-of  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-11-10. Updated: 2026-11-10  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-121885 · Severity: medium · CVSS 6.5 · Published 2026-11-10

Podman is a container runtime that allows users to run and manage containerized applications. An attacker can craft a container image with malicious metadata labels that cause Podman's auto-update feature to restart arbitrary system services, leading to denial of service or system shutdown if Podman runs with administrative privileges. The attack requires a user to pull and run an untrusted container image.

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-121885 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-121885 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-121885?** Medium severity, with a CVSS score of 6.5, published 10 November 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** Podman.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-121885?** No fixed version is recorded yet. Do not use podman auto-update on untrusted containers or images. Before running an image, inspect its labels with podman image inspect --format '.Config.Labels' and verify that io.containers.autoupdate and PODMAN_SYSTEMD_UNIT labels are not set to unexpected values. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.

**How is CVE-2026-121885 attacked?** It is attacked over the network, in a hosted service.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-121885?** Check whether you run Podman. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## How to fix


Do not use podman auto-update on untrusted containers or images. Before running an image, inspect its labels with podman image inspect --format '.Config.Labels' and verify that io.containers.autoupdate and PODMAN_SYSTEMD_UNIT labels are not set to unexpected values.

## Technical details

Podman's auto-update mechanism improperly trusts image metadata labels (io.containers.autoupdate, PODMAN_SYSTEMD_UNIT) without validation, allowing an attacker to specify arbitrary systemd units for restart via crafted container images. This is a reliance on untrusted input in a security decision (CWE-807). The vulnerability requires user interaction to pull and run the malicious image; in default configurations and rootless environments, the impact is limited to denial of service via service restarts rather than code execution.

## Affected products

- Podman

## Timeline

- 2026-11-10: disclosed

## References

- [https://access.redhat.com/downloads/content/package-browser/](https://access.redhat.com/downloads/content/package-browser/)
- [https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-121885](https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-121885)