# CVE-2026-19278: Red Hat Advanced Cluster Security privilege escalation in M2M auth

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-19278-red-hat-advanced-cluster-security-privilege-escalation-in-m2m  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-08-10. Updated: 2026-09-25  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-19278 · Severity: medium · CVSS 6.8 · Published 2026-08-10

Red Hat Advanced Cluster Security (RHACS) is a Kubernetes security platform used to monitor and protect containerized applications. A flaw in its machine-to-machine token authentication system allows attackers with valid credentials to bypass role restrictions and gain unauthorized administrative privileges, potentially compromising container security policies and access controls across an organization's Kubernetes infrastructure.

Technologies: [Red Hat Advanced Cluster Security for Kubernetes](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/advanced-cluster-security-for-kubernetes). Vendors: [Red Hat](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/red-hat).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-19278 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-19278 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-19278?** Medium severity, with a CVSS score of 6.8, published 10 August 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** Red Hat Advanced Cluster Security for Kubernetes <UNKNOWN>.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-19278?** No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. 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-2026-19278 attacked?** It is attacked over the network.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-19278?** Check whether you run Red Hat Advanced Cluster Security for Kubernetes at an affected version. 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.

## Technical details

The vulnerability is a permissive regular expression (CWE-625) flaw in RHACS Central's machine-to-machine (M2M) OIDC token exchange mechanism. When administrators configure M2M role mappings, the system fails to anchor regex patterns (missing `^` and `$` delimiters), enabling substring matching instead of exact claim value matching. An attacker with a valid OIDC token from a trusted identity provider can craft a claim value that partially matches a configured pattern, bypassing intended role restrictions. This requires both a valid OIDC token and an unanchored pattern in the admin configuration; exploitation leads to privilege escalation and unauthorized role assignment. Mitigation involves updating role mapping expressions to use properly anchored regex patterns.

## Affected products

- Red Hat Advanced Cluster Security for Kubernetes <UNKNOWN>

## Timeline

- 2026-08-10: 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-2026-19278](https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-19278)

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