CVE-2026-23428: Linux Kernel use-after-free (CVSS 9.8)

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ksmbd: fix use-after-free of share_conf in compound request smb2_get_ksmbd_tcon() reuses work->tcon in compound requests without validating tcon->t_state. ksmbd_tree_conn_lookup() checks t_state == TREE_CONNECTED on the initial lookup path, but the compound reuse path bypasses this check entirely. If a prior command in the compound (SMB2_TREE_DISCONNECT) sets t_state to TREE_DISCONNECTED and frees share_conf via ksmbd_share_config_put(), subsequent commands dereference the freed share_conf through work->tcon->share_conf. KASAN report: [ 4.144653] ================================================================== [ 4.145059] BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in smb2_write+0xc74/0xe70 [ 4.145415] Read of size 4 at addr ffff88810430c194 by task kworker/1:1/44 [ 4.145772] [ 4.145867] CPU: 1 UID: 0 PID: 44 Comm: kworker/1:1 Not tainted 7.0.0-rc3+ #60 PREEMPTLAZY [ 4.145871] Hardware name: QEMU Ubuntu 24.04 PC v2 (i440FX + PIIX, arch_caps fix, 1996), BIOS 1.16.3-debian-1.16.3-2 04/01/2014 [ 4.145875] Workqueue: ksmbd-io handle_ksmbd_work [ 4.145888] Call Trace: [ 4.145892] <TASK> [ 4.145894] dump_stack_lvl+0x64/0x80 [ 4.145910] print_report+0xce/0x660 [ 4.145919] ? __pfx__raw_spin_lock_irqsave+0x10/0x10 [ 4.145928] ? smb2_write+0xc74/0xe70 [ 4.145931] kasan_report+0xce/0x100 [ 4.145934] ? smb2_write+0xc74/0xe70 [ 4.145937] smb2_write+0xc74/0xe70 [ 4.145939] ? __pfx_smb2_write+0x10/0x10 [ 4.145942] ? _raw_spin_unlock+0xe/0x30 [ 4.145945] ? ksmbd_smb2_check_message+0xeb2/0x24c0 [ 4.145948] ? smb2_tree_disconnect+0x31c/0x480 [ 4.145951] handle_ksmbd_work+0x40f/0x1080 [ 4.145953] process_one_work+0x5fa/0xef0 [ 4.145962] ? assign_work+0x122/0x3e0 [ 4.145964] worker_thread+0x54b/0xf70 [ 4.145967] ? __pfx_worker_thread+0x10/0x10 [ 4.145970] kthread+0x346/0x470 [ 4.145976] ? recalc_sigpending+0x19b/0x230 [ 4.145980] ? __pfx_kthread+0x10/0x10 [ 4.145984] ret_from_fork+0x4fb/0x6c0 [ 4.145992] ? __pfx_ret_from_fork+0x10/0x10 [ 4.145995] ? __switch_to+0x36c/0xbe0 [ 4.145999] ? __pfx_kthread+0x10/0x10 [ 4.146003] ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30 [ 4.146013] </TASK> [ 4.146014] [ 4.149858] Allocated by task 44: [ 4.149953] kasan_save_stack+0x33/0x60 [ 4.150061] kasan_save_track+0x14/0x30 [ 4.150169] __kasan_kmalloc+0x8f/0xa0 [ 4.150274] ksmbd_share_config_get+0x1dd/0xdd0 [ 4.150401] ksmbd_tree_conn_connect+0x7e/0x600 [ 4.150529] smb2_tree_connect+0x2e6/0x1000 [ 4.150645] handle_ksmbd_work+0x40f/0x1080 [ 4.150761] process_one_work+0x5fa/0xef0 [ 4.150873] worker_thread+0x54b/0xf70 [ 4.150978] kthread+0x346/0x470 [ 4.151071] ret_from_fork+0x4fb/0x6c0 [ 4.151176] ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30 [ 4.151286] [ 4.151332] Freed by task 44: [ 4.151418] kasan_save_stack+0x33/0x60 [ 4.151526] kasan_save_track+0x14/0x30 [ 4.151634] kasan_save_free_info+0x3b/0x60 [ 4.151751] __kasan_slab_free+0x43/0x70 [ 4.151861] kfree+0x1ca/0x430 [ 4.151952] __ksmbd_tree_conn_disconnect+0xc8/0x190 [ 4.152088] smb2_tree_disconnect+0x1cd/0x480 [ 4.152211] handle_ksmbd_work+0x40f/0x1080 [ 4.152326] process_one_work+0x5fa/0xef0 [ 4.152438] worker_thread+0x54b/0xf70 [ 4.152545] kthread+0x346/0x470 [ 4.152638] ret_from_fork+0x4fb/0x6c0 [ 4.152743] ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30 [ 4.152853] [ 4.152900] The buggy address belongs to the object at ffff88810430c180 [ 4.152900] which belongs to the cache kmalloc-96 of size 96 [ 4.153226] The buggy address is located 20 bytes inside of [ 4.153226] freed 96-byte region [ffff88810430c180, ffff88810430c1e0) [ 4.153549] [ 4.153596] The buggy address belongs to the physical page: [ 4.153750] page: refcount:0 mapcount:0 mapping:0000000000000000 index:0xffff88810430ce80 pfn:0x10430c [ 4.154000] flags: 0x ---truncated---

CVSS 3.1 breakdown

Attack vectorNetwork

Attack complexityLow

Privileges requiredNone

User interactionNone

ScopeUnchanged

ConfidentialityHigh

IntegrityHigh

AvailabilityHigh

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected products

Linux Kernel≥ 5.15.121 < 5.15.203 · ≥ 6.13 < 6.18.20 · ≥ 6.1.36 < 6.1.167 · ≥ 6.19 < 6.19.10

Remediation

Fixed in

Linux Kernel≥ 5.15.203

Patch & vendor advisories

References

Related CVEs

Recent high-severity vulnerabilities sharing a weakness type.

Frequently asked

Is CVE-2026-23428 being actively exploited?

CVE-2026-23428 is not in the CISA KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit probability is 0.33%.

How severe is CVE-2026-23428?

CVE-2026-23428 has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.8, rated critical. EPSS estimates a 0.33% probability of exploitation.

Which products are affected by CVE-2026-23428?

Affected products include Linux Kernel.

How do I fix CVE-2026-23428?

Upgrade affected software to a fixed version, for example Linux Kernel 5.15.203 or later, then confirm no affected versions remain in your inventory.

How Secuno handles this

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