CVE-2026-25996: CVE-2026-25996: Terminal Escape Sequence Injection in Inspektor Gadget

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CVE-2026-25996: Terminal Escape Sequence Injection in Inspektor Gadget

Vulnerability ID: CVE-2026-25996
CVSS Score: 9.8
Published: 2026-04-22

Inspektor Gadget versions prior to 0.49.1 are vulnerable to a Terminal Escape Sequence Injection (CWE-150) in the default columns output mode. The tool fails to sanitize string fields retrieved from eBPF trace events before printing them to the terminal. Attackers operating within monitored containers can exploit this by injecting ANSI control sequences into system events, enabling log spoofing, defense evasion, and potential arbitrary command execution on the operator's terminal.

TL;DR

A CWE-150 vulnerability in Inspektor Gadget allows attackers inside monitored containers to inject ANSI escape sequences via eBPF trace fields, manipulating the operator's terminal output and hiding malicious activity.

⚠️ Exploit Status: POC

Technical Details

CWE ID: CWE-150
Attack Vector: Network / Container-adjacent
CVSS v3.1 Score: 9.8 (Critical)
EPSS Score: 0.00082 (0.08%)
Impact: Log Spoofing, Defense Evasion, Terminal Manipulation
Exploit Status: Proof of Concept Available
KEV Status: Not Listed

Affected Systems

Inspektor Gadget (ig CLI tool) versions < 0.49.1
Kubernetes and Linux environments monitored by vulnerable ig installations utilizing default column output
inspektor-gadget: < 0.49.1 (Fixed in: 0.49.1)

Code Analysis

Commit: d59cf72

pkg/columns: avoid terminal interpreting escape sequences

@@ -36,6 +37,11 @@ func (tf *TextColumnsFormatter[T]) buildFixedString(s string, length int, ellips
        return ""
    }

+   // Escape the string to avoid the terminal interpreting escape sequences.
+   // strconv.Quote adds surrounding quotes, which are then sliced off.
+   s = strconv.Quote(s)
+   s = s[1 : len(s)-1]
+
    if !tf.options.ShouldTruncate {
        return s
    }

Exploit Details

Official Fix Commit: C Proof of Concept demonstrating log hiding via CSI injection in open syscall.

Mitigation Strategies

Upgrade Inspektor Gadget to version 0.49.1 or later
Use the -o json output mode flag instead of the default columns mode
Utilize terminal emulators with restricted feature sets that disable potentially dangerous CSI/OSC extensions

Remediation Steps:

Identify all hosts, workstations, and CI/CD pipelines running the ig CLI tool.
Download and install the updated binary for Inspektor Gadget version v0.49.1 from the official GitHub releases page.
Audit automated monitoring scripts to ensure they either run the patched version or explicitly use the -o json format flag.
Validate the patch application by ensuring ig version returns 0.49.1.

References

Read the full report for CVE-2026-25996 on our website for more details including interactive diagrams and full exploit analysis.

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