CVE-2026-46141

Kernel memory exhaustion via child-domain lookup

Published May 28, 2026 · Updated May 28, 2026

Memory leak in Linux kernel 6.18 through 6.18.29 and 6.19 through 7.0.6 allows local users to exhaust kernel memory. xive_irq_free_data() queries chip_data through the child MSI-X domain even though the allocated xive_irq_data belongs to the parent XIVE domain, so lookup failure leaves each allocation live. Exploitation requires local access to a PowerPC XIVE system with an NVMe device, and repeated MSI-X allocation cycles can interrupt service by consuming kernel memory.

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

Memory leak in Linux kernel 6.18 through 6.18.29 and 6.19 through 7.0.6 allows local users to exhaust kernel memory. xive_irq_free_data() queries chip_data through the child MSI-X domain even though the allocated xive_irq_data belongs to the parent XIVE domain, so lookup failure leaves each allocation live. Exploitation requires local access to a PowerPC XIVE system with an NVMe device, and repeated MSI-X allocation cycles can interrupt service by consuming kernel memory.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-46141
Published
May 28, 2026
Updated
May 28, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux Kernel
Classifications
CWE-401, T1499.001
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. May 28, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. May 28, 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=6.18
  2. Affected versionversion=cc0cc23babc979e399f34f53e4bccf702a389558 <2546fb8c9acc8c7512ed4339ce2a982cb7407065
  3. Affected versionversion=cc0cc23babc979e399f34f53e4bccf702a389558 <6771c54728c278bf1e4bfdab4fddbbb186e33498
  4. Affected versionversion=cc0cc23babc979e399f34f53e4bccf702a389558 <e66ed135cdf23a318e9727dca48f98f7f6142f78

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linux Kernelversion=6.18; version=cc0cc23babc979e399f34f53e4bccf702a389558 <2546fb8c9acc8c7512ed4339ce2a982cb7407065; version=cc0cc23babc979e399f34f53e4bccf702a389558 <6771c54728c278bf1e4bfdab4fddbbb186e33498; version=cc0cc23babc979e399f34f53e4bccf702a389558 <e66ed135cdf23a318e9727dca48f98f7f6142f78

Published CVSS scores

3.3Amazon LinuxCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
5.5CanonicalCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
5.5NIST NVDCVSS: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
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

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

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

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