Vulnerability · Published Jul 8, 2025 · Assigned by GitHub_M
CVE-2025-53547Helm Chart Dependency Updating With Malicious Chart.yaml Content And Symlink Can Lead To Code Execution
High 8.5
In plain English
A high-severity code injection in helm from helm. There are no confirmed reports of exploitation so far. The chance it is exploited in the next 30 days is estimated at 0.5% (higher than 43% of all known vulnerabilities). Ready-made attack tooling exists: public proof-of-concept code. Fixed versions are available - upgrade the affected package.
Official description
Helm is a package manager for Charts for Kubernetes. Prior to 3.18.4, a specially crafted Chart.yaml file along with a specially linked Chart.lock file can lead to local code execution when dependencies are updated. Fields in a Chart.yaml file, that are carried over to a Chart.lock file when dependencies are updated and this file is written, can be crafted in a way that can cause execution if that same content were in a file that is executed (e.g., a bash.rc file or shell script). If the Chart.lock file is symlinked to one of these files updating dependencies will write the lock file content to the symlinked file. This can lead to unwanted execution. Helm warns of the symlinked file but did not stop execution due to symlinking. This issue has been resolved in Helm v3.18.4.
Affected packages & fixed versions
| Ecosystem | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpine:v3.22 | helm | 3.18.4-r0 | ALPINE-CVE-2025-53547 |
| Alpine:v3.23 | helm | 3.18.4-r0 | ALPINE-CVE-2025-53547 |
| Alpine:v3.24 | helm | 3.18.4-r0 | ALPINE-CVE-2025-53547 |
| Go | helm.sh/helm/v3 | 3.18.4 | GHSA-557j-xg8c-q2mm |
| Go | helm.sh/helm/v3 | 3.17.4 | GHSA-557j-xg8c-q2mm |
| Go | helm.sh/helm/v3 | 3.18.4 | GO-2025-3802 |
Affected products (as reported)
Weakness: CWE-94 · Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:H/A:H