CVE-2026-89021: mikrotik routeros Path Traversal

Vulnerability summary

CVE-2026-89021 is a medium (CVSS 6.9) Path Traversal vulnerability in mikrotik routeros. EPSS estimates a 0.38% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 30.8% of scored vulnerabilities.

Timeline

1. 14-09-2026
   PublishedVulnerability first disclosed.
2. 01-10-2026
   Last modifiedVulnerability information updated.

Description

MikroTik RouterOS before 7.24.2 contains a path traversal vulnerability in the container package OCI/tar image extraction that allows attackers to write files outside the container root by supplying a crafted container image with symlinks pointing to arbitrary paths. Attackers can exploit unsanitized tar member path extraction during container import via /container/add to achieve root-privileged file creation, directory creation, file deletion via overlayfs whiteout, and hardlink creation on the persistent data partition without ever starting the container. The 7.23.x long-term branch does not contain this fix; the container binaries in container-7.23.3.npk and container-7.23.4.npk are byte-identical. The vendor has confirmed that the issue is not resolved in the long-term release and that the fix is carried forward only in the stable branch from 7.24.2 onward, with no backport to the long-term branch planned.

• CWE-22Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory.
• CWE-59Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')The product attempts to access a file based on the filename, but it does not properly prevent that filename from identifying a link or shortcut that resolves to an unintended resource.