CVE-2026-65960: Tetragon: Unauthenticated Tetragon gRPC admin API accessible from hostNetwork pods
Tetragon is an eBPF-based security observability and runtime enforcement project. Versions before 1.7.0 can use a Helm default that exposes the privileged Tetragon gRPC API through an unauthenticated TCP listener on localhost:54321. An attacker who can run or compromise same-node hostNetwork pods can reach the listener and invoke privileged methods without authentication. These methods can add, delete, or reconfigure tracing policies and change debug settings, potentially resulting in privilege escalation or container escape. Version 1.7.0 changes the default endpoint to a Unix-domain socket. Deployments that do not expose an unauthenticated TCP listener are not affected.
Remediation
Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.
- Upgrade
Upgrade
Tetragonto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 1.7.0
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
Which workloads can realistically reach the affected API?
An attacker must be able to run or compromise a hostNetwork pod on the same node as Tetragon. The listener is bound to localhost:54321, so access depends on sharing that node's host network namespace.
Are all Tetragon deployments affected?
No. Only deployments exposing the privileged gRPC API through an unauthenticated TCP listener are affected. Deployments that do not expose such a listener are not affected.
What could an attacker do after reaching the API?
They can invoke privileged methods without authentication, including adding, deleting, or reconfiguring tracing policies and changing debug settings. This can potentially lead to privilege escalation or container escape.
What configuration change addresses the issue?
Upgrade to version 1.7.0, which changes the default endpoint to a Unix-domain socket. If an upgrade is not immediately possible, ensure the deployment does not expose an unauthenticated TCP listener.