CVE-2022-48981

Local privilege escalation via GEM reference miscount

Published Oct 21, 2024 · Updated Aug 5, 2026

Use-after-free in the Linux kernel DRM shmem helper allows local users to gain kernel privileges through a crafted GEM buffer mapping. On an mmap error, drm_gem_shmem_mmap() drops a GEM object reference it does not own, prematurely freeing an object whose handle remains live. Local users must access a DRM device and force drm_gem_shmem_get_pages() to fail; exploitation enables kernel reads, writes, panic, or hang.

CVSS severity7.8
High
EPSS probability0.25%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Use-after-free in the Linux kernel DRM shmem helper allows local users to gain kernel privileges through a crafted GEM buffer mapping. On an mmap error, drm_gem_shmem_mmap() drops a GEM object reference it does not own, prematurely freeing an object whose handle remains live. Local users must access a DRM device and force drm_gem_shmem_get_pages() to fail; exploitation enables kernel reads, writes, panic, or hang.

The record

CVE
CVE-2022-48981
Published
Oct 21, 2024
Updated
Aug 5, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
CWE-416, T1068
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Oct 21, 2024CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 5, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=2194a63a818db71065ebe09c8104f5f021ca4e7b <24013314be6ee4ee456114a671e9fa3461323de8
  2. Affected versionversion=2194a63a818db71065ebe09c8104f5f021ca4e7b <585a07b820059462e0c93b76c7de2cd946b26b40
  3. Affected versionversion=2194a63a818db71065ebe09c8104f5f021ca4e7b <586847b98e20ab02212ca5c1fc46680384e68a28
  4. Affected versionversion=2194a63a818db71065ebe09c8104f5f021ca4e7b <6a4da05acd062ae7774b6b19cef2b7d922902d36
  5. Affected versionversion=2194a63a818db71065ebe09c8104f5f021ca4e7b <83e3da8bb92fcfa7a1d232cf55f9e6c49bb84942
  6. Affected versionversion=5.2

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=2194a63a818db71065ebe09c8104f5f021ca4e7b <24013314be6ee4ee456114a671e9fa3461323de8; version=2194a63a818db71065ebe09c8104f5f021ca4e7b <585a07b820059462e0c93b76c7de2cd946b26b40; version=2194a63a818db71065ebe09c8104f5f021ca4e7b <586847b98e20ab02212ca5c1fc46680384e68a28; version=2194a63a818db71065ebe09c8104f5f021ca4e7b <6a4da05acd062ae7774b6b19cef2b7d922902d36; version=2194a63a818db71065ebe09c8104f5f021ca4e7b <83e3da8bb92fcfa7a1d232cf55f9e6c49bb84942; version=5.2

Published CVSS scores

7.8Linux CVE TeamCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

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No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-416Use After Free
T1068Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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