Local denial of service via NULL root dereference
Published Jan 31, 2026 · Updated Jan 31, 2026
NULL pointer dereference in btrfs in Linux Kernel allows local users to crash affected systems during inode eviction. In btrfs_evict_inode(), trace setup reads the root identifier before the function checks whether the root pointer is NULL. A low-privileged local user must reach inode eviction with a missing btrfs root; the resulting kernel dereference causes a denial-of-service crash without reported data disclosure or modification.
Summary
What happened
NULL pointer dereference in btrfs in Linux Kernel allows local users to crash affected systems during inode eviction. In btrfs_evict_inode(), trace setup reads the root identifier before the function checks whether the root pointer is NULL. A low-privileged local user must reach inode eviction with a missing btrfs root; the resulting kernel dereference causes a denial-of-service crash without reported data disclosure or modification.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2025-71184
- Published
- Jan 31, 2026
- Updated
- Jan 31, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux Kernel
- Classifications
- CWE-476, T1499
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jan 31, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Jan 31, 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=1abe9b8a138c9988ba8f7bfded6453649a31541f <582ba48e4a4c06fef6bdcf4e57b7b9af660bbd0c
- Affected versionversion=1abe9b8a138c9988ba8f7bfded6453649a31541f <99e057f3d3ef24b99a7b1d84e01dd1bd890098da
- Affected versionversion=1abe9b8a138c9988ba8f7bfded6453649a31541f <f157dd661339fc6f5f2b574fe2429c43bd309534
- Affected versionversion=2.6.39
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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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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