VulnerabilityPublished 18 Oct 2026Updated 21 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-98862: Linux kernel · audit: fix exe mark UAF in kill_rules()

Source GCVE Database

Authoritative record:CVE-2026-98862

Not known to be exploited · fixed in f2cc5462b78559c7628a9f8ac9a9592e7783183a : update Linux kernel when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 13:47 UTC

Severity

Medium

Rated by Threat Radar · CVSS not yet scored by NVD

EPSS: 0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 4% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in f2cc5462b78559c7628a9f8ac9a9592e7783183a, aa650d87a498844060eecb1d336f4d46f4d1b0b3, 304960900991157e6883bdf0b39782b690545ee8 +2

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-73jm-mgrc-fg99

What to do

Upgrade to a fixed release listed under Affected software.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 34d99af52ad40bd498ba66970579a5bc1fb1a3bc, < f2cc5462b78559c7628a9f8ac9a9592e7783183a	Fixed in f2cc5462b78559c7628a9f8ac9a9592e7783183a
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 34d99af52ad40bd498ba66970579a5bc1fb1a3bc, < aa650d87a498844060eecb1d336f4d46f4d1b0b3	Fixed in aa650d87a498844060eecb1d336f4d46f4d1b0b3
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 34d99af52ad40bd498ba66970579a5bc1fb1a3bc, < 304960900991157e6883bdf0b39782b690545ee8	Fixed in 304960900991157e6883bdf0b39782b690545ee8
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 34d99af52ad40bd498ba66970579a5bc1fb1a3bc, < 88633025f20ba9c32ccdb3efc86eafdf98cb825c	Fixed in 88633025f20ba9c32ccdb3efc86eafdf98cb825c
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 34d99af52ad40bd498ba66970579a5bc1fb1a3bc, < 9aee3caeff4dd4126d84f67607b95cec8719b867	Fixed in 9aee3caeff4dd4126d84f67607b95cec8719b867
LinuxLinux	Affected =4.3	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

A fix has been implemented to address this vulnerability by modifying the cleanup process in kill_rules() to wait for an RCU grace period before freeing executable marks. Users should apply the official Linux kernel patches that include this fix. Since this is a kernel-level issue, upgrading to a patched kernel version is the recommended remediation. No additional mitigations are specified or required beyond applying the fix.

Description

A use-after-free vulnerability in the Linux kernel's audit subsystem was resolved. The flaw occurs in the kill_rules() function when removing mixed AUDIT_DIR and AUDIT_EXE rules, leading to a race condition that can cause a use-after-free of executable marks. This happens when a watched directory is removed concurrently with another task evaluating the rule, potentially freeing memory prematurely. The fix involves unlinking rules from RCU-visible lists and waiting for an RCU grace period before freeing executable marks, preventing the use-after-free condition.

References

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