CVE-2026-46121
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mm/damon/sysfs-schemes: protect memcg_path kfree() with damon_sysfs_lock Patch series "mm/damon/sysfs-schemes: fix use-after-free for [memcg_]path". Reads of 'memcg_path' and 'path' files in DAMON sysfs interface could race with their writes, results in use-after-free. Fix those. This patch (of 2): damon_sysfs_scheme_filter->mmecg_path can be read and written by users, via DAMON sysfs memcg_path file. It can also be indirectly read, for the parameters {on,off}line committing to DAMON. The reads for parameters committing are protected by damon_sysfs_lock to avoid the sysfs files being destroyed while any of the parameters are being read. But the user-driven direct reads and writes are not protected by any lock, while the write is deallocating the memcg_path-pointing buffer. As a result, the readers could read the already freed buffer (user-after-free). Note that the user-reads don't race when the same open file is used by the writer, due to kernfs's open file locking. Nonetheless, doing the reads and writes with separate open files would be common. Fix it by protecting both the user-direct reads and writes with damon_sysfs_lock.
Affected versions
Linux kernel versions
6.6.96,
6.12.36,
6.15.5,
6.16
and later are affected. Fixed in
6.6.140,
6.12.88,
6.18.30,
7.0.7,
7.1-rc2
and their respective stable series.
References
The following references provide additional information about CVE-2026-46121 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/1e68eb96e8beb1abefd12dd22c5637795d8a877e
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PatchKernel patch commithttps://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b1e9f2d5870776347edef927f9bb3ea19b8e3abb
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PatchKernel patch commithttps://git.kernel.org/stable/c/baecc45ad60e621ef14d6c1e7f41ef36bbfdf910
Frequently asked questions
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What is CVE-2026-46121?
CVE-2026-46121 is a unscored severity Linux kernel vulnerability . It affects Linux kernel versions from 6.6.96 onward and has been patched in 6.6.140, 6.12.88, 6.18.30 and others. CVE-2026-46121 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-2026-46121?
Yes — CVE-2026-46121 has been patched. Fixed versions include 6.6.140, 6.12.88, 6.18.30 and others. If you are running Linux kernel 6.6.96 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.
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Is CVE-2026-46121 actively exploited?
No — CVE-2026-46121 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.