Kyverno before version 1.19.2 contains a control‑flow weakness where PolicyExceptions are folded into generated ValidatingAdmissionPolicies without honoring the enable or namespace gates. An attacker who can create PolicyException objects in a namespace can inject negated matchConditions that cause the generated policy to admit resources that would otherwise be rejected, thereby bypassing cluster‑wide policy enforcement.

All Kyverno installations using the kyverno:kyverno product with a release before 1.19.2 are vulnerable. The issue resides in the admissionpolicygenerator controller and affects any cluster where PolicyExceptions are enabled.

The vulnerability is rated CVSS 8.3, indicating high severity. EPSS data is unavailable and KEV does not list this flaw, but the attack requires only the ability to create PolicyException objects in a namespace, which can be granted to many users or compromised service accounts. Once the PolicyException is crafted, the attacker can bypass enforcement for all resources that match the negated condition, potentially allowing the creation of privileged objects or the modification of cluster‑wide resources.