CVE-2026-72459

Kernel memory corruption via incomplete label cleanup

Published Aug 15, 2026 · Updated Aug 15, 2026

Resource-management flaw in Linux AppArmor allows local users to corrupt kernel memory by inducing a label-proxy allocation failure. In aa_label_alloc(), aa_label_init() reserves a secid before the proxy step, but the failure path calls kfree() instead of aa_label_free(), leaving initialized resources and a dangling secid entry. An unprivileged local process on an AppArmor-enabled system must force memory pressure and reach label merging; successful exploitation can disclose or overwrite kernel memory, execute kernel code, or panic the host.

CVSS severity7.8
High
EPSS probability0.14%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Resource-management flaw in Linux AppArmor allows local users to corrupt kernel memory by inducing a label-proxy allocation failure. In aa_label_alloc(), aa_label_init() reserves a secid before the proxy step, but the failure path calls kfree() instead of aa_label_free(), leaving initialized resources and a dangling secid entry. An unprivileged local process on an AppArmor-enabled system must force memory pressure and reach label merging; successful exploitation can disclose or overwrite kernel memory, execute kernel code, or panic the host.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-72459
Published
Aug 15, 2026
Updated
Aug 15, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
T1499
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Aug 15, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 15, 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=4.13
  2. Affected versionversion=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <654fe7505dc6889724d4094fa64f89991afabfc3
  3. Affected versionversion=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <6d91479174240f39e9edea250d95fa08c678a207
  4. Affected versionversion=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <7cb69e109610bba500e1ecb870f7988a4717208a
  5. Affected versionversion=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <ae02e603c0b39b29f3ce6fe3efe01b286af1a2a4
  6. Affected versionversion=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <b14fbacad77d64594228983ec20d61a224f3f491
  7. Affected versionversion=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <b5a9da5d36162d34db0f36abb15420e295176793
  8. Affected versionversion=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <bf310b044e85d4de670c94295c5d8e4c5bc5e7bc
  9. Affected versionversion=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <cc2192899d502e3321e60cf1e91421e7309d089c

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=4.13; version=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <654fe7505dc6889724d4094fa64f89991afabfc3; version=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <6d91479174240f39e9edea250d95fa08c678a207; version=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <7cb69e109610bba500e1ecb870f7988a4717208a; version=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <ae02e603c0b39b29f3ce6fe3efe01b286af1a2a4; version=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <b14fbacad77d64594228983ec20d61a224f3f491; version=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <b5a9da5d36162d34db0f36abb15420e295176793; version=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <bf310b044e85d4de670c94295c5d8e4c5bc5e7bc; version=f1bd904175e8190ce14aedee37e207ab51fe3b30 <cc2192899d502e3321e60cf1e91421e7309d089c

Published CVSS scores

7.8LinuxCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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.

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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

T1499Endpoint Denial of Service

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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