CVE-2026-46046
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ext4: fix missing brelse() in ext4_xattr_inode_dec_ref_all() The commit c8e008b60492 ("ext4: ignore xattrs past end") introduced a refcount leak in when block_csum is false. ext4_xattr_inode_dec_ref_all() calls ext4_get_inode_loc() to get iloc.bh, but never releases it with brelse().
Affected versions
Linux kernel versions
5.10.237,
5.15.181,
6.1.135,
6.6.88,
6.12.24,
5.4.293,
6.13.12,
6.14.3,
6.15
and later are affected. Fixed in
5.10.258,
5.15.209,
6.1.175,
6.6.140,
6.12.86,
6.18.27,
7.0.4,
7.1-rc1
and their respective stable series.
References
The following references provide additional information about CVE-2026-46046 including vendor advisories, patch commits, exploit details, and third-party analysis. Links are sourced from the NIST NVD database.
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PatchKernel patch commithttps://git.kernel.org/stable/c/097227f1ffe1a85bc3c359f81c71e3d40e06e920
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PatchKernel patch commithttps://git.kernel.org/stable/c/153ab2c52355fbebcae622db8e7b506492c73a29
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PatchKernel patch commithttps://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1bc1107a3a403a6d440673ed6666f7b07ef868a8
Frequently asked questions
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What is CVE-2026-46046?
CVE-2026-46046 is a unscored severity Linux kernel vulnerability . It affects Linux kernel versions from 5.10.237 onward and has been patched in 5.10.258, 5.15.209, 6.1.175 and others. CVE-2026-46046 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
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Is there a patch available for CVE-2026-46046?
Yes — CVE-2026-46046 has been patched. Fixed versions include 5.10.258, 5.15.209, 6.1.175 and others. If you are running Linux kernel 5.10.237 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.
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Is CVE-2026-46046 actively exploited?
No — CVE-2026-46046 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.