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CVE-2026-98985

namespace: check the mounts before reading their parents in pivot_root()

Products / packages Linux

Published

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Severity and exploitation

Not in CISA KEVNo CVSS score

KEV coverage does not rule out exploitation.

KEV checked 14/11/2026, 20:55:32 UTC

Severity

unknown

CVSS measures technical severity, not the likelihood of an attack.

Known exploitation

Not listed in the checked CISA KEV catalog

Absence from CISA KEV does not rule out attacks.

Public exploit

Not established by this record

Missing evidence does not mean no public exploit exists.

Remediation

Fix status not established

No structured fix or guidance is available here. Check the latest publisher advisory.

What this means

The Linux kernel has a vulnerability in pivot_root() where it checks the mounts before reading their parents, but new_root can be a file descriptor to an unmounted mount, causing a slab-use-after-free error. The affected versions are Linux kernel versions starting from 4.0.2 and 4.1. The vulnerability requires access to the pivot_root() function.

Summarized by @cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast. Verify details against the original sources.

Attack conditions

No attack-condition excerpt has been identified here. Review the full source description and references for authentication, network access, and configuration requirements.

Review supporting sources →

Affected versions

Check the exact model, release, and any platform requirements against your installation.

Linux · Linux

Linux

10 ranges
Linux version evidence

Compare with this publisher’s ranges. This does not inspect your installation.

affected

e0c9c0afd2fc958ffa34b697972721d81df8a56f → before 43fd2e2ec66e6db26b6ea3e9e7a4c1018455e1b0

git versions

e0c9c0afd2fc958ffa34b697972721d81df8a56f → before 5b5f8d0895cfa9f781ce107225d578897203444f

git versions

e0c9c0afd2fc958ffa34b697972721d81df8a56f → before 3184a2fda996af8fcd6def36020ec023c6279015

git versions

e0c9c0afd2fc958ffa34b697972721d81df8a56f → before a56d4f8f8f4c5d9ac339d5c03a9d90eecd3697fc

git versions

e0c9c0afd2fc958ffa34b697972721d81df8a56f → before 3c2441e21c3df867e4131e0ff784ecdb3a7a55f8

git versions

e0c9c0afd2fc958ffa34b697972721d81df8a56f → before e3aba6900483f64e6c9eb328150dd633b7d36c1c

git versions

e0c9c0afd2fc958ffa34b697972721d81df8a56f → before 3dad2330c89343ba083cf7868779083fd5fbe0fe

git versions

e0c9c0afd2fc958ffa34b697972721d81df8a56f → before 6b7c001eb5857fa09041f47673666060a2e5fc1c

git versions

84b78514033ff22c443473214ab6d0508394cf7a

git versions

4.0.2 → before 4.1

semver versions

unaffected

unknown

Other versions: unaffected

Linux · Linux

Linux

10 ranges
Linux version evidence

Compare with this publisher’s ranges. This does not inspect your installation.

affected

4.1

unaffected

0 → before 4.1

semver versions

5.10.273 → through 5.10.*

semver versions

5.15.224 → through 5.15.*

semver versions

6.1.191 → through 6.1.*

semver versions

6.6.160 → through 6.6.*

semver versions

6.12.114 → through 6.12.*

semver versions

6.18.57 → through 6.18.*

semver versions

7.2.11 → through 7.2.*

semver versions

7.3 → through *

original_commit_for_fix versions

unknown

Other versions: affected

Automatic dependency matching is unavailable for this record. Use the product evidence and publisher’s instructions to check your installation.

What to do

Compare your installed product and version with the affected versions above. A matching product name alone does not confirm exposure.

No structured fix or remediation guidance is available here. Check the full source description and vendor’s latest advisory for a patch or workaround; do not assume another version is safe.

cve.new guidance unless attributed to a publisher. This page does not inspect your installation.

Public exploit evidence

No public exploit reference is identified in the imported evidence. This is not a claim that no exploit exists.

Original source description

Read the full publisher description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

namespace: check the mounts before reading their parents in pivot_root()

path_pivot_root() reads the parents of new_root and of the caller's root and checks whether they are shared before it checks that either mount is in the caller's mount namespace. Only namespace_sem is held. That's fine for a mount that is in the caller's mount namespace.

But new_root can be a file descriptor to a mount that has been unmounted and that only the file descriptor keeps alive. If that mount stayed attached to its parent when it was unmounted nothing pins the parent for it. The final mntput() of the parent unhooks the children under mount_lock alone and frees the parent afterwards:

pivot_root() close(fd), last ref on the parent

ex_parent = new_mnt->mnt_parent mntput_no_expire_slowpath() __umount_mnt(new_mnt) cleanup_mnt() call_rcu() IS_MNT_SHARED(ex_parent)

BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in path_pivot_root+0xf1a/0x1840 Read of size 4 at addr ffff8881047382f8 by task pivot_widen/157 path_pivot_root+0xf1a/0x1840 __x64_sys_pivot_root+0x165/0x190

The same goes for the caller's root via chroot(). Both outcomes of the check end in EINVAL so nothing but the read itself goes wrong. It's the same thing commit bb4609405752 ("statmount: read the parent of an unmounted mount under mount_lock") fixed for statmount().

Check that both mounts are in the caller's namespace before their parents are read. Every path returns EINVAL either way.

References

8 sources
git.kernel.org/stable/c/43fd2e2ec66e6db26b6ea3e9e7a4c1018455e1b0
Source referenceLinux
git.kernel.org/stable/c/5b5f8d0895cfa9f781ce107225d578897203444f
Source referenceLinux
git.kernel.org/stable/c/3184a2fda996af8fcd6def36020ec023c6279015
Source referenceLinux
git.kernel.org/stable/c/a56d4f8f8f4c5d9ac339d5c03a9d90eecd3697fc
Source referenceLinux
git.kernel.org/stable/c/3c2441e21c3df867e4131e0ff784ecdb3a7a55f8
Source referenceLinux
git.kernel.org/stable/c/e3aba6900483f64e6c9eb328150dd633b7d36c1c
Source referenceLinux
View 2 more references
git.kernel.org/stable/c/3dad2330c89343ba083cf7868779083fd5fbe0fe
Source referenceLinux
git.kernel.org/stable/c/6b7c001eb5857fa09041f47673666060a2e5fc1c
Source referenceLinux

Inside the record

Evidence available

Package identity · not supplied
Version evidence
Remediation guidance · not supplied
Weakness classification · not supplied
Additional publishers · not supplied

Describes the evidence in this view, not whether the product is safe.

Original records

CVE-2026-98985

View the latest unmodified CVE JSON from the official source. It may be newer than this imported page.

cve.new JSON →

Environment requirements

These conditions apply together as specified by the publisher. A matching product name alone does not establish exposure.

Linux · platform conditions

Any condition may hold

Vulnerable product

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

From (inclusive): 4.1

Before: 5.10.273

Vulnerable product

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

From (inclusive): 4.1

Before: 5.15.224

Vulnerable product

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

From (inclusive): 4.1

Before: 6.1.191

Vulnerable product

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

From (inclusive): 4.1

Before: 6.6.160

Vulnerable product

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

From (inclusive): 4.1

Before: 6.12.114

Vulnerable product

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

From (inclusive): 4.1

Before: 6.18.57

Vulnerable product

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

From (inclusive): 4.1

Before: 7.2.11

Vulnerable product

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

From (inclusive): 4.1

Before: 7.3

Vulnerable product

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

From (inclusive): 4.0.2

Applicability preview
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    "nodes": [
      {
        "operator": "OR",
        "negate": false,
        "cpeMatch": [
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            "vulnerable": true,
            "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
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            "vulnerable": true,
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        ]
      }
    ]
  }
]
Contributing organizations · 1
Linux

Assigning organization

2026-10-30

Timeline

All times UTC

  1. Advisory published

    Publication date supplied by the source.

  2. Source updated

    Latest modification date supplied by the source.

  3. Last imported by cve.new

    Latest catalog import, not the date we first saw this advisory.

What changed

Follow changes
No substantive changes have been recorded here yet. History starts when cve.new observes a change after tracking is enabled; earlier edits are not reconstructed.

Large field values are marked as truncated previews. Original source snapshots remain retained.