VulnerabilityPublished 16 Sep 2026Updated 5 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-89975: Linux kernel · nvme-fabrics: fix DHCHAP secret leak on parse failure

Affects Linux kernelSource GCVE Database

Authoritative record:CVE-2026-89975

Not known to be exploited.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 13:47 UTC

Severity

Medium

Rated by Threat Radar · CVSS not yet scored by NVD

EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 10% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 16 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.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 6.17.0-5.5 – 7.0.0-38.38 23 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-aws`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-aws?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 6.17.0-1002.2 – 7.0.0-1014.14 15 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-azure`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 6.17.0-1003.3 – 7.0.0-1017.17 15 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-azure-fde`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure-fde?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 7.0.0-1003.3 – 7.0.0-1016.16 9 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-gcp`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-gcp?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 6.17.0-1002.2 – 7.0.0-1014.14 13 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-gke`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-gke?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 7.0.0-1002.3 – 7.0.0-1008.9 6 affected builds	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 properly frees the temporary secret strings on parse failure using kfree_sensitive(). Users should apply the updated Linux kernel versions that include this patch. Until patched, avoid repeatedly providing malformed DHCHAP secret options to /dev/nvme-fabrics. Monitor vendor advisories for official patches and updates.

Description

A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's NVMe fabrics implementation causes a memory leak of DHCHAP secret material on parse failure in nvmf_parse_options(). When malformed DHCHAP secrets are parsed, temporary secret strings are duplicated but not freed on validation failure, leading to a leak of sensitive memory. This occurs before required-option checks and does not require an active NVMe-oF target or transport connection. The issue affects specific Linux kernel versions and is classified as medium severity.

Impact

The vulnerability causes a memory leak of sensitive DHCHAP secret material in the kernel memory space. Although it does not directly allow code execution or privilege escalation, leaking secret material could potentially aid attackers in compromising authentication mechanisms. The leak is reachable without an active NVMe-oF target or transport connection, making it easier to trigger. No known exploits in the wild have been reported.

Summary

The Linux kernel's nvme-fabrics component duplicates DHCHAP secret strings with match_strdup() before validating their representation in nvmf_parse_options(). If validation fails, the parser returns an error before assigning the temporary string to the options structure, leaving the temporary string unassigned and thus not freed. Subsequently, when the options structure is freed, the unassigned temporary string remains allocated, causing a memory leak of potentially sensitive secret material. This leak can be triggered by repeatedly providing malformed DHCHAP secrets (e.g., writing invalid secrets to /dev/nvme-fabrics). The fix involves freeing the temporary string with kfree_sensitive() on all validation error paths to securely clear leaked secret data.

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 24 Oct 2026, 20:36 UTC

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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