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ManageIQ EUVDEUVD-2026-97362

| CVE-2026-52903 HIGH
Deserialization of Untrusted Data (CWE-502)
2026-10-12 redhat GHSA-rwm4-fgr7-vcr6
8.8
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: redhat
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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Authenticate with dialog import access
  2. Delivery
    Upload crafted YAML dialog payload
  3. Exploit
    Trigger Psych::DisallowedClass error
  4. Execution
    Silent fallback to YAML.unsafe_load deserializes gadget
  5. Impact
    Execute arbitrary Ruby code on appliance

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A08:2025 - Software or Data Integrity Failures
ASVS 5.0
V1 - Encoding and Sanitization Safe deserialization, type allowlists
MITRE ATT&CK

2 techniques across 2 tactics: Execution, Initial Access

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Exploitation Conditions

Requires an authenticated ManageIQ (or CloudForms) account that holds dialog import privileges - not an anonymous or read-only user. The instance must be running in production mode, because the vulnerable YamlLoadAliases fallback from YAML.safe_load to YAML.unsafe_load is specifically the production behavior. The attacker must supply a YAML payload containing a class disallowed by safe_load so that Psych::DisallowedClass is raised, which is the exact event that activates the unsafe deserialization path. Limiting factors: the dialog-import authorization requirement (PR:L) confines this to insiders or already-compromised accounts, and CloudForms being EOL means affected operators cannot patch and must rely on restricting the dialog-import role.

Impact

This is a credible, high-priority vulnerability for any live ManageIQ deployment, but with important caveats. The CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N) correctly reflects network-reachable, low-complexity exploitation requiring only low-level authentication, and the C:H/I:H/A:H impact matches a full remote-code-execution outcome via Ruby object deserialization (CWE-502) - a well-understood and reliably weaponizable class of bug. The design flaw is especially concerning because it is not an edge case: the YamlLoadAliases module deliberately falls back from YAML.safe_load to YAML.unsafe_load in production whenever a Psych::DisallowedClass error occurs, meaning a disallowed (malicious) class is precisely the trigger that activates the unsafe path. No EPSS score, KEV listing, or public POC was provided in the input, so there is no public exploit identified at time of analysis and no evidence of in-the-wild activity - the real-world threat is currently potential rather than demonstrated. The main mitigating factor is the PR:L requirement: the attacker must already hold an authenticated account with dialog import access, which bounds this to insiders or post-compromise lateral movement rather than anonymous internet scanning. Note also a scope nuance: Red Hat CloudForms (one of the two affected CPEs) is End of Life and will receive no patch, so CloudForms operators carry unremediable residual risk and should treat this as compensating-control-only.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An authenticated ManageIQ user who has been granted dialog import permission uploads a maliciously crafted YAML dialog definition. The payload references a Ruby class disallowed by safe_load, which raises Psych::DisallowedClass and silently triggers the production fallback to unsafe_load, deserializing the attacker's gadget chain and executing arbitrary code on the appliance. No public exploit was identified in the provided data, but deserialization-to-RCE via Ruby/Psych is a well-established and reliable technique given the required privilege.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
No patch listed yet 0.4% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Oct 12, 2026

Remote code execution in ManageIQ (and its downstream Red Hat CloudForms) is possible because the YamlLoadAliases module overrides YAML.safe_load so that in production a Psych::DisallowedClass error silently falls back to YAML.unsafe_load, deserializing arbitrary Ruby objects. An authenticated attacker holding dialog import privileges (CVSS 3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H, base 8.8) can upload a crafted YAML dialog payload containing a disallowed class to trigger an unsafe deserialization path with full confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact. No public exploit code has been identified at time of analysis and there is no CISA KEV listing, but Red Hat CloudForms has reached End of Life and no errata will be issued, so CloudForms operators cannot patch and must depend on restricting the dialog import role.

RemediationAI

No vendor-released patch has been identified at time of analysis: Red Hat states that CloudForms is End of Life and that no errata or patches will be issued, and the ManageIQ CVE record (https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-52903, Bugzilla https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2486730) does not name a fixed version, so support now falls to the upstream ManageIQ community. The most effective compensating control is to remove or neutralize the dangerous fallback in the YamlLoadAliases module so that a rescued Psych::DisallowedClass propagates as an error instead of calling YAML.unsafe_load in the production code path; the trade-off is that legitimate dialogs relying on aliases or otherwise disallowed classes will fail to import and must be re-serialized with permitted types. In parallel, restrict the dialog import privilege to a minimal set of trusted administrators, since the vulnerability requires an authenticated account with that role (PR:L) and cannot be reached anonymously or by read-only users. If dialog import is not operationally required, disable the feature entirely; otherwise audit existing and newly uploaded dialog YAML for suspicious Ruby object tags such as !ruby/object and alert on Psych::DisallowedClass exceptions, which are the exact trigger for the unsafe path. Finally, CloudForms operators on an unsupported EOL release should plan migration to a maintained platform, as no patch path exists for that product branch.

Affected VersionsENISA

manageiq 0
Red Hat CloudForms 0

Affects your stack

Find out whether the stacks and servers you run are on an affected version.

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

ManageIQ is a Ruby on Rails cloud-management platform whose dialog import feature parses user-supplied YAML. Ruby's Psych library provides YAML.safe_load, which restricts deserialization to a permitted class list, and Psych::DisallowedClass is the exception raised when a payload references a class outside that list. The defective YamlLoadAliases monkey-patch/reopening overrides YAML.safe_load and rescues Psych::DisallowedClass by delegating to YAML.unsafe_load specifically in production mode, converting a hardened parser into an unrestricted one. That re-enables Ruby object instantiation from YAML tags such as !ruby/object:..., the classic CWE-502 (Deserialization of Untrusted Data) pattern that yields code execution through Ruby object/gadget chains. The supplied CPEs, cpe:2.3:a:manageiq:manageiq:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* and cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_cloudforms:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*, use unsupported wildcards for the version field, indicating vendor enumeration did not pin a fixed version, so all ManageIQ releases and all CloudForms releases should be treated as potentially affected. Exploitation requires the instance to run in production mode (the fallback is production-specific behavior), an account with dialog import rights, and a payload that intentionally raises Psych::DisallowedClass to activate the unsafe path.

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Severity by source

Vendor (redhat) PRIMARY 8.8 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 8.8 HIGH

Dialog import is a web-reachable authenticated feature (AV:N, PR:L), the fallback triggers deterministically on a disallowed class (AC:L), and Ruby deserialization yields full RCE (C:H/I:H/A:H).

3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (redhat).

CVSS VectorVendor: redhat

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

DescriptionCVE.org

A deserialization of untrusted data vulnerability was found in ManageIQ. The YamlLoadAliases module overrides YAML.safe_load to silently fall back to YAML.unsafe_load in production when a Psych::DisallowedClass error occurs. An authenticated attacker with dialog import access can exploit this to achieve remote code execution by uploading a crafted YAML payload that triggers the fallback and deserializes arbitrary Ruby objects.

Red Hat CloudForms, which was based on ManageIQ, has reached End of Life and is no longer supported. No errata or patches will be issued. This CVE is being assigned for the benefit of the ManageIQ community and downstream consumers.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

ManageIQ and its downstream Red Hat CloudForms contain an authenticated remote code execution flaw in the YAML dialog import feature that grants full control of the affected management platform to any user holding dialog import rights. Because CloudForms has reached End of Life, Red Hat will not issue errata, leaving operators permanently exposed and dependent on access restrictions rather than a fix. Leadership should treat this as a standing risk to the integrity of virtualization and cloud management infrastructure, since a single compromised privileged account could yield complete confidentiality, integrity, and availability loss across managed environments.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

No vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis. Interim mitigations: remove dialog import privileges from all non-essential accounts and restrict the role to a minimal trusted group; enforce strong authentication and monitoring on those accounts; segment ManageIQ and CloudForms management interfaces from general user networks; enable detailed audit logging of dialog import and deserialization events; and plan migration off End of Life CloudForms to a supported platform.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.4%
Top 63% exploitable
Prevalence
Low
niche open-source infrastructure management platform; CloudForms variant is EOL
Data Quality
4 sources
Confidence: Medium

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.4%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Scheduled
Exploitation· derived
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable· derived
No
Human Impact
High

Priority Score

44
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +44
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Insecure deserialization occurs when an application converts serialized data (a stream of bytes representing an object's state) back into a living object without proper validation.

Remote Code Execution represents the critical moment when an attacker successfully runs arbitrary code on a target system without physical access.

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