Kernel crash via faultable build-ID page-cache read
Published Jan 25, 2026 · Updated Jan 25, 2026
NULL pointer dereference in Linux Kernel 6.12 through 6.18.6 and 6.19 release candidates allows local users to crash the kernel. In a sleepable lib/buildid path, freader directly calls read_cache_folio() instead of the standard __kernel_read() interface, leaving filemap_read_folio() to dereference a NULL pointer while faulting file data. Reachability requires local low-privileged execution and a build-ID read that enters the sleepable, faultable path; the reported consequence is an availability-only kernel crash.
Summary
What happened
NULL pointer dereference in Linux Kernel 6.12 through 6.18.6 and 6.19 release candidates allows local users to crash the kernel. In a sleepable lib/buildid path, freader directly calls read_cache_folio() instead of the standard __kernel_read() interface, leaving filemap_read_folio() to dereference a NULL pointer while faulting file data. Reachability requires local low-privileged execution and a build-ID read that enters the sleepable, faultable path; the reported consequence is an availability-only kernel crash.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-23002
- Published
- Jan 25, 2026
- Updated
- Jan 25, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux Kernel
- Classifications
- CWE-476, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jan 25, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Jan 25, 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.
- Affected versionversion=6.12
- Affected versionversion=ad41251c290dfe3c01472c94d2439a59de23fe97 <568aeb3476c770a3863c755dd2a199c212434286
- Affected versionversion=ad41251c290dfe3c01472c94d2439a59de23fe97 <777a8560fd29738350c5094d4166fe5499452409
- Affected versionversion=ad41251c290dfe3c01472c94d2439a59de23fe97 <b11dfb7708f212b96c7973a474014c071aa02e05
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
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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