Ansible Operator Plugins: Arbitrary code execution via Jinja2 template injection
Summary
Ansible Operator Plugins, used in Red Hat operators built with Ansible, contains a Jinja2 template injection flaw. A low-privileged Kubernetes user who can submit crafted custom resources can make Ansible evaluate embedded Jinja2 expressions inside the operator pod. This can lead to arbitrary code execution and privilege escalation, giving control over the operator's service account, which typically holds cluster-wide permissions. The CVSS vector requires a high-complexity condition, and the scope change means the impact extends beyond the operator component.
Affected
- Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform 2.6 and 2.7 (per CVE record)
- Red Hat OpenShift Service Mesh 3.4 (per CVE record)
- Further Red Hat products listed as affected by default in the CVE record, including Migration Toolkit products (to be verified)
Fixed in
- Unknown. Fixed package and image versions could not be verified. Check RHSA-2026:87120 and the Red Hat CVE page.
Workaround
- According to the Red Hat CVE record, set markUnsafe: true in watches.yaml for the affected operator so that CR spec fields are not evaluated as templates.
- Restart the operator pod if required.
- Verify this workaround in the Red Hat advisory before relying on it, as it may be a mitigation rather than a full fix.
Exploitation
- CISA SSVC: exploitation none, not automatable, total technical impact.
- Not listed in the CISA KEV catalogue at the time of research.
- No public proof of concept found. EPSS below 1%.
Our recommendation
- Check whether Ansible Operator Plugins, Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform or OpenShift operators are used in your environment.
- Apply the Red Hat errata for affected products once fixed versions are confirmed.
- Apply the markUnsafe workaround where patching is not yet possible.
- Restrict who can create or modify custom resources and review the cluster-wide permissions of operator service accounts.
- Monitor operator pods for unexpected process or network activity.
Public exploits
PoC-in-GitHub, Metasploit and Exploit-DB list nothing for this CVE.
Research sources
- Red Hat CVE page CVE-2026-92982 access.redhat.com
- Red Hat Security Advisory RHSA-2026:87120 access.redhat.com
- Red Hat Security Advisory RHSA-2026:68695 access.redhat.com
- Red Hat Bugzilla entry 2522227 bugzilla.redhat.com
- Vulners CVE record CVE-2026-92982 vulners.com
- OpenCVE record CVE-2026-92982 app.opencve.io
- VulDB entry 420713 vuldb.com
Researched and written up in English and German by an AI (Claude by Anthropic) based on NVD, CISA, EPSS and the sources listed. The vendor information is authoritative. Researched on 1 Nov 2026, 10:31.
Original description (NVD)
A flaw was found in Ansible Operator Plugins. A low-privileged Kubernetes user can exploit a Jinja2 template injection vulnerability by crafting malicious custom resource (CR) specification values. These values are processed by Ansible without proper sanitization, allowing embedded Jinja2 expressions to be executed within the operator pod. This can lead to arbitrary code execution and privilege escalation, granting the attacker control over the operator's service account with cluster-wide permissions.
Sources
The tracker combines official, freely usable data sources – updated continuously:
- NVD (NIST) – CVEs, rating (CVSS), affected products
- CISA KEV – vulnerabilities confirmed by CISA as actively exploited
- CISA Vulnrichment – CISA assessment (SSVC) in the official CVE record
- FIRST EPSS – probability of exploitation
- Microsoft MSRC – Patch Tuesday: vulnerabilities, severity, updates
- PoC-in-GitHub – public proof-of-concept repositories
- Metasploit (Rapid7) – modules of the Metasploit Framework
- Exploit-DB (OffSec) – archive of public exploits (links only)
- Patch days: official vendor pages (linked per vendor) (Vendor patch days)
This product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS data © FIRST.org.
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