CVE-2026-89749: Linux kernel · tracing: Fix crash passing ERR_PTR to kthread_stop()
Affects Linux kernelSource GCVE Database
Not known to be exploited.
Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 13:47 UTC
Rated by Threat Radar · CVSS not yet scored by NVD
- EPSS
- 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 12% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Exploitation evidence
Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 11 Sep 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors
A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.
What to do
Affected software
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinuxpkg:deb/ubuntu/linux?arch=source&distro=resoluteOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-awspkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-aws?arch=source&distro=resoluteOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-azurepkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure?arch=source&distro=resoluteOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-azure-fdepkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure-fde?arch=source&distro=resoluteOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-gcppkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-gcp?arch=source&distro=resoluteOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-gkepkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-gke?arch=source&distro=resoluteOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.
AI-suggested
A fix is available that adds proper checks on the return value of kthread_run() before calling kthread_stop() and uses WARN_ON() to log failures. Users should apply the official Linux kernel patches that address this issue. Since this is a kernel-level vulnerability, updating to a patched kernel version is the recommended remediation.
Description
A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's tracing subsystem caused a kernel crash when an error pointer was passed to kthread_stop(). This occurred because kthread_run() could return an ERR_PTR on failure, which was then unconditionally passed to kthread_stop(), leading to a dereference of an invalid pointer. The issue was fixed by adding a check on the return value of kthread_run() before calling kthread_stop(), and using WARN_ON() to log failures in thread creation during the boot-time event self-test.
References
- nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-89749 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/12a499f741fc5be3731c8b0a0d909406575cc2eb (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/649bc7df3e5d7be6f7996a95084037dbf3cad1e5 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/adadf4192f700bca82abfda9fa6d58c0bf37cc04 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/c40e0b4fa365969e67011529eabdfb66d1022256 (opens in a new tab)
- ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2026-89749 (opens in a new tab)
- cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-89749 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/linus/649bc7df3e5d7be6f7996a95084037dbf3cad1e5 (opens in a new tab)