CVE-2022-49913

Local memory exhaustion via leaked inode lists

Published May 1, 2025 · Updated May 11, 2026

Memory leakage in btrfs in the Linux kernel allows local users to exhaust memory by provoking errors during data-extent backref walking. On an error path in find_parent_nodes(), prelim_release() frees direct-reference objects without releasing attached inode lists not moved into the output ulist. A low-privilege local user must trigger an error while indirect references or the direct-reference tree are processed; repeated triggers consume kernel memory and can interrupt the host.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.20%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Memory leakage in btrfs in the Linux kernel allows local users to exhaust memory by provoking errors during data-extent backref walking. On an error path in find_parent_nodes(), prelim_release() frees direct-reference objects without releasing attached inode lists not moved into the output ulist. A low-privilege local user must trigger an error while indirect references or the direct-reference tree are processed; repeated triggers consume kernel memory and can interrupt the host.

The record

CVE
CVE-2022-49913
Published
May 1, 2025
Updated
May 11, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
CWE-401, T1499.001
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. May 1, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. May 11, 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=4.14
  2. Affected versionversion=86d5f994425252d8a40e2184c94a2682ae8ecfbf <222a3d533027b9492d5b7f5ecdc01a90f57bb5a9
  3. Affected versionversion=86d5f994425252d8a40e2184c94a2682ae8ecfbf <61e06128113711df0534c404fb6bb528eb7d2332
  4. Affected versionversion=86d5f994425252d8a40e2184c94a2682ae8ecfbf <6a6731a0df8c47ecc703bd7bb73459df767051e0
  5. Affected versionversion=86d5f994425252d8a40e2184c94a2682ae8ecfbf <83ea8c5b54d452a5769e605e3c5c687e8ca06d89
  6. Affected versionversion=86d5f994425252d8a40e2184c94a2682ae8ecfbf <92876eec382a0f19f33d09d2c939e9ca49038ae5

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=4.14; version=86d5f994425252d8a40e2184c94a2682ae8ecfbf <222a3d533027b9492d5b7f5ecdc01a90f57bb5a9; version=86d5f994425252d8a40e2184c94a2682ae8ecfbf <61e06128113711df0534c404fb6bb528eb7d2332; version=86d5f994425252d8a40e2184c94a2682ae8ecfbf <6a6731a0df8c47ecc703bd7bb73459df767051e0; version=86d5f994425252d8a40e2184c94a2682ae8ecfbf <83ea8c5b54d452a5769e605e3c5c687e8ca06d89; version=86d5f994425252d8a40e2184c94a2682ae8ecfbf <92876eec382a0f19f33d09d2c939e9ca49038ae5

Published CVSS scores

5.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
5.5SUSECVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 9, 2026Sep 15, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 15, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-401Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime
T1499.001Endpoint Denial of Service: OS Exhaustion Flood

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

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Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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