Executive brief
A vulnerability was identified in the Linux kernel's XFS file system, which is used for managing data storage on many Linux servers. The flaw occurs during the recovery of file attributes after a system crash or unexpected restart. If exploited, this could lead to a system crash or allow an attacker to gain unauthorized control over the system.
Technical details
A vulnerability exists in the XFS file system component of the Linux kernel, specifically within the xfs_attri_recover_work function in fs/xfs/xfs_attr_item.c. The issue stems from the improper handling of inode pointers when xlog_recovery_iget fails; the code attempts to release an inode (xfs_irele) using a dangling or uninitialized pointer. This is a local vulnerability that requires user interaction (such as mounting a specially crafted filesystem or triggering recovery). Successful exploitation can lead to a kernel oops, denial of service, or potentially local privilege escalation. Patches have been released for multiple stable branches including 6.12.y, 6.18.y, and 6.19.y.
Affected products
- Linux Linux Kernel 6.10 to 6.12.80, 6.13 to 6.18.21, 6.19 to 6.19.11, 7.0-rc1 to 7.0-rc5
Timeline
- 2026-03-23: other: Patch authored
- 2026-05-05: disclosed: CVE published
- 2026-05-29: advisory: NIST initial analysis completed