VulnerabilityPublished 18 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-98539: Linux kernel · fs/ntfs3: use d_instantiate_new() in ntfs_create_inode() and murder syzbot's "WARNING

Source GCVE Database

Authoritative record:CVE-2026-98539· High

Not known to be exploited · fixed in 37ec7353f4ac495b28284b0fcb0e53d21d1b3f3f : patch Linux kernel soon.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 14:05 UTC

Severity

High

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.
Patch: Available – fixed in 37ec7353f4ac495b28284b0fcb0e53d21d1b3f3f, 6fda7121cb6a8ea6fbd77d0f787f04b8e8b5358e, 1ae2a242c15b03470b1b16289298e597bbe3bb29 +1

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 18 Oct 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.

ghsa-fgm8-xgjp-8vhv

What to do

Upgrade Linux kernel to 37ec7353f4ac495b28284b0fcb0e53d21d1b3f3f, 6fda7121cb6a8ea6fbd77d0f787f04b8e8b5358e, 1ae2a242c15b03470b1b16289298e597bbe3bb29 or 1abd643f3783ea8f8e273c18697ff0413aa92dc7.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 82cae269cfa953032fbb8980a7d554d60fb00b17, < 37ec7353f4ac495b28284b0fcb0e53d21d1b3f3f	Fixed in 37ec7353f4ac495b28284b0fcb0e53d21d1b3f3f
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 82cae269cfa953032fbb8980a7d554d60fb00b17, < 6fda7121cb6a8ea6fbd77d0f787f04b8e8b5358e	Fixed in 6fda7121cb6a8ea6fbd77d0f787f04b8e8b5358e
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 82cae269cfa953032fbb8980a7d554d60fb00b17, < 1ae2a242c15b03470b1b16289298e597bbe3bb29	Fixed in 1ae2a242c15b03470b1b16289298e597bbe3bb29
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 82cae269cfa953032fbb8980a7d554d60fb00b17, < 1abd643f3783ea8f8e273c18697ff0413aa92dc7	Fixed in 1abd643f3783ea8f8e273c18697ff0413aa92dc7
LinuxLinux	Affected =5.15	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

A fix has been implemented in the Linux kernel to address this issue by using d_instantiate_new() instead of d_instantiate() in ntfs_create_inode() and removing the trailing unlock_new_inode() call. Users should update to the fixed kernel version once available. No additional mitigation is required as the patch resolves the underlying locking issue.

Description

A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's NTFS3 filesystem driver related to inode creation and locking has been resolved. The issue involved improper use of d_instantiate() in ntfs_create_inode(), leading to lock state corruption and potential deadlocks during concurrent mount and directory creation operations. The fix replaces d_instantiate() with d_instantiate_new() and removes a problematic unlock_new_inode() call. This resolves warnings and lock underflow conditions observed during certain race conditions.

Impact

This vulnerability can cause kernel warnings related to lock state corruption and may lead to deadlocks or hangs during filesystem operations involving NTFS3 mounts and directory creation. It affects system stability and reliability but does not indicate direct privilege escalation or data corruption from the provided information.

Summary

The vulnerability in the Linux kernel NTFS3 driver arises from the use of d_instantiate() in ntfs_create_inode() after the inode is hashed but before unlock_new_inode() is called. This causes the dentry to be found without locking the parent's i_rwsem, allowing concurrent operations to corrupt the inode's read-write semaphore lock state. Specifically, if the inode is a directory, unlock_new_inode() resets the lock count and owner, potentially causing underflow and deadlocks when inode_lock() is called concurrently. The issue was triggered by syzbot's test case involving concurrent mkdir and mount operations on NTFS3. The resolution involves switching to d_instantiate_new() and dropping the trailing unlock_new_inode(), ensuring error paths correctly discard the new inode without corrupting lock state.

References

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