Detect CVE-2026-48751: Incus Restricted Project Bypass Leading to Arbitrary Command Execution in CrowdStrike LogScale
Detects exploitation of CVE-2026-48751, a critical missing authorization vulnerability (CWE-862) in Incus (github.com/lxc/incus/v7/cmd/incusd) versions prior to 7.2.0. An attacker with access to a restricted Incus project can bypass project restrictions to execute arbitrary commands on the host system, achieving container escape with a CVSS score of 9.9. A public proof-of-concept is available.
MITRE ATT&CK
LogScale Detection Query
#event_simpleName=ProcessRollup2
| ParentBaseFileName IN ("incusd", "incus")
| CommandLine = /(nsenter|unshare|chroot|pivot_root)|FileName IN (sh|bash|zsh|python3|python|perl|ruby)/
| eval ThreatCategory = case(
CommandLine =~ /nsenter|unshare|chroot|pivot_root/, "NAMESPACE_ESCAPE",
FileName IN ("sh", "bash", "zsh", "python3", "python", "perl", "ruby"), "SHELL_SPAWN",
"OTHER"
)
| where ThreatCategory IN ("NAMESPACE_ESCAPE", "SHELL_SPAWN")
| table _time, ComputerName, UserName, ParentBaseFileName, FileName, CommandLine, ThreatCategory
| sort -_time
| limit 200CrowdStrike Falcon CQL query identifying process execution patterns where incusd spawns interactive shells or executes namespace manipulation commands, consistent with CVE-2026-48751 exploitation.
Data Sources
Required Tables
False Positives & Tuning
- Authorized incus exec commands from administrative accounts
- Automated infrastructure tools using Incus as part of container orchestration
- Development systems with high volumes of container exec operations
- Legitimate security tools performing container escape simulations in authorized contexts
Other platforms for CVE-2026-48751
Testing Methodology
Validate this detection against 3 adversary techniques from Atomic Red Team. Each test below lists the behaviour to exercise and the telemetry you should expect to see. Executable commands and cleanup steps are available with Pro.
- Test 1Incus Restricted Project Shell Escape via Exec API
Expected signal: Process audit logs showing incusd spawning /bin/sh or nsenter with parent PID of incusd; auditd EXECVE records for nsenter or chroot with ppid matching incusd; /proc/<pid>/ns/pid symlink pointing to host PID namespace
- Test 2Verify Incus Vulnerable Version Present
Expected signal: Process execution events for incusd --version and incus project list; API calls to /1.0/projects and /1.0/instances visible in incusd access logs
- Test 3Container Escape via Host Namespace Entry Post-Bypass
Expected signal: Auditd SYSCALL records for nsenter (execve), unshare, clone syscalls; /proc/<pid>/ns/pid and /proc/<pid>/ns/mnt symlinks showing target namespace 1 (host init); process tree showing sh/bash with host-level PID namespace confirmed by NSpid field in /proc/self/status
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