---
title: "CVE-2025-1974: ingress-nginx admission controller RCE escalation"
url: https://erroneo.us/security/cve/CVE-2025-1974/
description: "CVE-2025-1974 (k8s.io/ingress-nginx (Go)): A security issue was discovered in Kubernetes where under certain conditions, an unauthenticated attacker with…"
type: vulnerability-record
section: "Security Digest"
date_published: 2025-03-24
date_modified: 2026-10-21
publisher: erroneo.us
author: erroneo.us Security Desk
cve: "CVE-2025-1974"
kev: false
cvss: 9.8
epss: 0.99384
license: All rights reserved. Quote with attribution and a link.
---

# CVE-2025-1974: ingress-nginx admission controller RCE escalation

**Signal:** High exploit likelihood. EPSS ranks it in the top 5% of all CVEs for likely exploitation in the next 30 days. (Computed from CISA KEV, EPSS and CVSS; not an editorial verdict.)

## Should you act?

- Not in CISA KEV , but CISA’s SSVC assessment records a public proof-of-concept, so attack code exists.
- EPSS 99.4% , percentile 99.9: FIRST’s model estimates a 99.4% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 99.9% of all scored CVEs (very high). EPSS is a probability, not a verdict.
- Remotely reachable with no login and no user interaction. If the vulnerable service is exposed to the internet, prioritize it.
- Only applies if your dependency tree includes k8s.io/ingress-nginx (Go) < 1.11.5, fixed in 1.11.5 ; k8s.io/ingress-nginx (Go) >= 1.12.0-beta.0, < 1.12.1, fixed in 1.12.1 . Check your lockfile, including transitive dependencies.
- Editorial verdict: Check exposure. IngressNightmare: ingress-nginx Cluster Takeover RCE — Patched since March 2025. If any cluster still runs ingress-nginx below 1.11.5 or 1.12.1, that is a cluster-takeover risk, and the controller itself is now retired, so plan the migration while you check.

## What it is

A security issue was discovered in Kubernetes where under certain conditions, an unauthenticated attacker with access to the pod network can achieve arbitrary code execution in the context of the ingress-nginx controller. This can lead to disclosure of Secrets accessible to the controller. (Note that in the default installation, the controller can access all Secrets cluster-wide.)

## Affected packages

- Go `k8s.io/ingress-nginx` < 1.11.5 → fixed: 1.11.5
- Go `k8s.io/ingress-nginx` >= 1.12.0-beta.0, < 1.12.1 → fixed: 1.12.1

## Affected products (CVE record)

- kubernetes ingress-nginx: <= 1.11.4, 1.12.0

## Severity

- kubernetes CVSS 3.1: 9.8 `CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`
- GitHub CVSS 3.1: 9.8 `CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`

## Exploitation

- CISA KEV: not listed (no confirmed in-the-wild exploitation known to CISA).
- CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation poc , automatable yes , technical impact total .
- FIRST EPSS (model of 2026-10-21): 99.38% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 99.9.

## Sources

- [GitHub Advisory GHSA-mgvx-rpfc-9mpv](https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-mgvx-rpfc-9mpv)
- [CVE.org record CVE-2025-1974](https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-1974)
- [NVD entry CVE-2025-1974](https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-1974)
- [https:](https://https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/issues/131009)
- [security.netapp.com](https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20250328-0008/)
- [github.com](https://github.com/B1ack4sh/Blackash-CVE-2025-1974)
- [exploit-db.com](https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/52475)
- [github.com](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/issues/131009)
- [github.com](https://github.com/kubernetes/ingress-nginx/releases/tag/controller-v1.11.5)
- [github.com](https://github.com/kubernetes/ingress-nginx/releases/tag/controller-v1.12.1)
- [groups.google.com](https://groups.google.com/g/kubernetes-security-announce/c/2qa9DFtN0cQ)

---
Source page: https://erroneo.us/security/cve/CVE-2025-1974/ · Security Digest: https://erroneo.us/security/ · More: https://erroneo.us/llms.txt