CVE-2026-53385

Local system crash via stale console pointer

Published Jul 19, 2026 · Updated Jul 19, 2026

NULL pointer dereference in the Linux kernel vc_screen subsystem allows local users to crash the system through concurrent vcs_write operations. While console_lock is dropped, virtual-console deallocation can stale vc_data; vcs_scr_updated then passes NULL to vcs_notifier. Local low-privilege access and timing the write against console deallocation are required; successful exploitation interrupts the host.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.13%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

NULL pointer dereference in the Linux kernel vc_screen subsystem allows local users to crash the system through concurrent vcs_write operations. While console_lock is dropped, virtual-console deallocation can stale vc_data; vcs_scr_updated then passes NULL to vcs_notifier. Local low-privilege access and timing the write against console deallocation are required; successful exploitation interrupts the host.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-53385
Published
Jul 19, 2026
Updated
Jul 19, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux Kernel
Classifications
CWE-476, T1499.004
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jul 19, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Jul 19, 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.

  1. Affected versionversion=0deff678157333d775af190f84696336cdcccd6d
  2. Affected versionversion=11dddfbb7a4e62489b01074d6c04d9d1b42e4047 <43a6281790273c1b0a9ab76609ff0245b968f1e6
  3. Affected versionversion=1de42e7653d6714a7507ba6696151a1fa028c69f
  4. Affected versionversion=3338d0b9acde770ee588eead5cac32c25e7048fc <ff4806202749a51938236214adc0281481a57366
  5. Affected versionversion=4.14.327 <4.15
  6. Affected versionversion=4.19.284 <4.20
  7. Affected versionversion=5.10.181 <5.10.260
  8. Affected versionversion=5.15.113 <5.15.211
  9. Affected versionversion=5.4.244 <5.5
  10. Affected versionversion=6.1.30 <6.1.177
  11. Affected versionversion=6.3.4 <6.4
  12. Affected versionversion=6.4
  13. Affected versionversion=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <09a43e81279b8da15526da09877134b8bcf618b0
  14. Affected versionversion=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <73049768ad57145acd337102c5aa3c788e6642c8
  15. Affected versionversion=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <74be188eb2dc1c99d63986167b9a67d415fe7326
  16. Affected versionversion=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <7cc3dd79777f6ae4625ec37e84dd18a26dc88bde
  17. Affected versionversion=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <8232fca738011ca2ec865b46ec721d1796dc0580
  18. Affected versionversion=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <a287620312dc6dcb9a093417a0e589bf30fcf38a
  19. Affected versionversion=934de9a9b659785fed3e820bc0c813a460c71fea
  20. Affected versionversion=a4e3c4c65ae8510e01352c9a4347e05c035b2ce2
  21. Affected versionversion=e3d1adcad5b73c7ed0c7edb35ab68abcaa45cf67 <b6bbb85cf45bf0b070e741997fe0af3a772c5ad5

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linux Kernelversion=0deff678157333d775af190f84696336cdcccd6d; version=11dddfbb7a4e62489b01074d6c04d9d1b42e4047 <43a6281790273c1b0a9ab76609ff0245b968f1e6; version=1de42e7653d6714a7507ba6696151a1fa028c69f; version=3338d0b9acde770ee588eead5cac32c25e7048fc <ff4806202749a51938236214adc0281481a57366; version=4.14.327 <4.15; version=4.19.284 <4.20; version=5.10.181 <5.10.260; version=5.15.113 <5.15.211; version=5.4.244 <5.5; version=6.1.30 <6.1.177; version=6.3.4 <6.4; version=6.4; version=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <09a43e81279b8da15526da09877134b8bcf618b0; version=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <73049768ad57145acd337102c5aa3c788e6642c8; version=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <74be188eb2dc1c99d63986167b9a67d415fe7326; version=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <7cc3dd79777f6ae4625ec37e84dd18a26dc88bde; version=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <8232fca738011ca2ec865b46ec721d1796dc0580; version=8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 <a287620312dc6dcb9a093417a0e589bf30fcf38a; version=934de9a9b659785fed3e820bc0c813a460c71fea; version=a4e3c4c65ae8510e01352c9a4347e05c035b2ce2; version=e3d1adcad5b73c7ed0c7edb35ab68abcaa45cf67 <b6bbb85cf45bf0b070e741997fe0af3a772c5ad5

Published CVSS scores

5.5NISTCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
5.5Red HatCVSS: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 9, 2026Sep 15, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 15, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-476NULL Pointer Dereference
T1499.004Endpoint Denial of Service: Application or System Exploitation

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

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Your stack

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