CVE-2026-98137: Linux kernel · ntfs: treat any nonzero dio zero-range return as an error
Affects Linux kernelSource GCVE Database
Not known to be exploited · CVSS 5.5 Medium.
Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 17:16 UTC
- EPSS
- 0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 0% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:HExploitation evidence
Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 25 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 corrects the error handling in the NTFS driver by treating any nonzero return from ntfs_dio_zero_range() as an error and aborting the allocation. Users should apply the official Linux kernel updates that include this fix to affected versions.
Description
A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's NTFS driver caused failed zeroing operations during file allocation to be silently ignored, potentially leaving stale data on disk. The issue was due to improper error handling in ntfs_dio_zero_range(), which never returns a positive value, but the zeroing failure check did not treat any nonzero return as an error. This flaw was fixed by treating any nonzero return as an error and aborting the allocation.
References
- ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2026-98137 (opens in a new tab)
- cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-98137 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/607a9478833db656e7ceac8e9e382fa4acfde545 (opens in a new tab)
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/56392b0d5290ff2b05fc673bc07803b8ae4cfd1b (opens in a new tab)
- nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98137 (opens in a new tab)