Local privilege escalation via Binder reference race
Published Jun 18, 2025 · Updated Aug 5, 2026
Use-after-free in the Linux kernel Binder driver allows local users to escalate privileges through a weak-handle transaction race. A failed BINDER_TYPE_WEAK_HANDLE node-reference increment can race binder_deferred_release(), leaving ref->proc dangling before its inner_lock is taken. A local low-privileged process that can open /dev/binder can control both sides of the race, enabling kernel memory read and write, privilege escalation, or a system crash or hang.
Summary
What happened
Use-after-free in the Linux kernel Binder driver allows local users to escalate privileges through a weak-handle transaction race. A failed BINDER_TYPE_WEAK_HANDLE node-reference increment can race binder_deferred_release(), leaving ref->proc dangling before its inner_lock is taken. A local low-privileged process that can open /dev/binder can control both sides of the race, enabling kernel memory read and write, privilege escalation, or a system crash or hang.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2022-49939
- Published
- Jun 18, 2025
- Updated
- Aug 5, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- CWE-416, CWE-362, T1068
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jun 18, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- 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?
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- Affected versionversion=372e3147df7016ebeaa372939e8774a1292db558 <06e5b43ca4dab06a92bf4c2f33766e6fb11b880a
- Affected versionversion=372e3147df7016ebeaa372939e8774a1292db558 <229f47603dd306bc0eb1a831439adb8e48bb0eae
- Affected versionversion=372e3147df7016ebeaa372939e8774a1292db558 <30d0901b307f27d36b2655fb3048cf31ee0e89c0
- Affected versionversion=372e3147df7016ebeaa372939e8774a1292db558 <603a47f2ae56bf68288784d3c0a8c5b8e0a827ed
- Affected versionversion=372e3147df7016ebeaa372939e8774a1292db558 <9629f2dfdb1dad294b468038ff8e161e94d0b609
- Affected versionversion=372e3147df7016ebeaa372939e8774a1292db558 <a0e44c64b6061dda7e00b7c458e4523e2331b739
- Affected versionversion=372e3147df7016ebeaa372939e8774a1292db558 <c2a4b5dc8fa71af73bab704d0cac42ac39767ed6
- Affected versionversion=4.14
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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