CVE-2026-32981
Published: 17 March 2026
Summary
CVE-2026-32981 is a high-severity Path Traversal (CWE-22) vulnerability in Anyscale Ray. Its CVSS base score is 8.7 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 48.1th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified are NIST 800-53 SI-10 (Information Input Validation) and SI-2 (Flaw Remediation).
Deeper analysis
CVE-2026-32981 is a path traversal vulnerability (CWE-22) in the Ray Dashboard, which listens on TCP port 8265 by default, affecting Ray versions prior to 2.8.1. The issue stems from improper validation and sanitization of user-supplied paths in the static file handling mechanism, allowing attackers to use traversal sequences such as "../" to access files outside the intended static directory. This results in local file disclosure, with a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N), indicating high confidentiality impact.
Any unauthenticated attacker with network access to the Ray Dashboard can exploit this vulnerability by sending crafted requests containing path traversal payloads. Successful exploitation enables reading arbitrary files on the host system, potentially exposing sensitive configuration data, credentials, or other local resources served by the dashboard.
Mitigation involves upgrading to Ray version 2.8.1 or later, where the static file handling has been patched to properly sanitize paths. Official details are available in the Ray project repository at https://github.com/ray-project/ray, along with advisories from VulnCheck (https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/ray-dashboard-path-traversal-leading-to-local-file-disclosure) and PacketStorm (https://packetstorm.news/files/id/215801/).
Ray is an open-source framework for scaling AI and machine learning workloads, making this vulnerability particularly relevant for deployments in distributed computing environments where the dashboard may be exposed. No public evidence of real-world exploitation has been reported as of the CVE publication on 2026-03-17.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2026-12635
Vulnerability details
A path traversal vulnerability was identified in Ray Dashboard (default port 8265) in Ray versions prior to 2.8.1. Due to improper validation and sanitization of user-supplied paths in the static file handling mechanism, an attacker can use traversal sequences (e.g.,…
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../) to access files outside the intended static directory, resulting in local file disclosure.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise TechniquesAI
Why these techniques?
Path traversal in exposed Ray Dashboard (port 8265) directly enables T1190 for unauthenticated remote exploitation of a public-facing web app; resulting arbitrary local file reads map to T1005 for data collection from the host filesystem, including potential credentials/configs.
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Directly requires validation and sanitization of user-supplied paths in the Ray Dashboard's static file handling to block traversal sequences like ../ from accessing arbitrary files.
Mandates identification, reporting, and correction of the path traversal flaw by upgrading to Ray version 2.8.1 or later where paths are properly sanitized.
Enforces access control policies to restrict the static file handler from disclosing files outside the intended directory despite improper path handling.