CVE-2026-31457Public exploit

Kernel crash via unchecked empty DAMON contexts

Published Apr 22, 2026 · Updated Apr 22, 2026

NULL pointer dereference in Linux Kernel 6.17 through 6.18.20 and 6.19 through 6.19.10 allows local users to crash the kernel via DAMON sysfs. damon_sysfs_repeat_call_fn() invokes three update helpers without checking contexts->nr, causing them to dereference contexts_arr[0] after nr_contexts becomes zero. Write access to the DAMON sysfs controls and a running DAMON instance are required; the bounded consequence is a kernel crash.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.12%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

NULL pointer dereference in Linux Kernel 6.17 through 6.18.20 and 6.19 through 6.19.10 allows local users to crash the kernel via DAMON sysfs. damon_sysfs_repeat_call_fn() invokes three update helpers without checking contexts->nr, causing them to dereference contexts_arr[0] after nr_contexts becomes zero. Write access to the DAMON sysfs controls and a running DAMON instance are required; the bounded consequence is a kernel crash.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-31457
Published
Apr 22, 2026
Updated
Apr 22, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux Kernel
Classifications
CWE-476, T1499
Attack vector
local
Privileges
admin

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Apr 22, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Apr 22, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

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

  1. Affected versionversion=6.17
  2. Affected versionversion=d809a7c64ba8229286b333c0cba03b1cdfb50238 <3527e9fdc38570cea0f6ddb7a2c9303d4044b217
  3. Affected versionversion=d809a7c64ba8229286b333c0cba03b1cdfb50238 <652cd0641a763dd0e846b0d12814977fadb2b7d8
  4. Affected versionversion=d809a7c64ba8229286b333c0cba03b1cdfb50238 <6557004a8b59c7701e695f02be03c7e20ed1cc15

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesadmin

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linux Kernelversion=6.17; version=d809a7c64ba8229286b333c0cba03b1cdfb50238 <3527e9fdc38570cea0f6ddb7a2c9303d4044b217; version=d809a7c64ba8229286b333c0cba03b1cdfb50238 <652cd0641a763dd0e846b0d12814977fadb2b7d8; version=d809a7c64ba8229286b333c0cba03b1cdfb50238 <6557004a8b59c7701e695f02be03c7e20ed1cc15

Published CVSS scores

5.5NISTCVSS: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.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

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
Privilegesadmin
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-476NULL Pointer Dereference
T1499Endpoint Denial of Service

Public exploit references

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

Technologies

Your stack

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo