CVE-2026-72461

Local denial of service via reference leak

Published Aug 15, 2026 · Updated Aug 15, 2026

Reference-count leakage in AppArmor in Linux 6.17 allows local users to exhaust system resources and interrupt service. The update_sk_ctx() path transfers the plabel reference into a socket context while its caller also releases that reference unconditionally, leaving ownership accounting inconsistent. Low-privileged local access that exercises the AppArmor UNIX-socket path can consume resources until the system crashes or stops serving work.

CVSS severity7.8
High
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

Reference-count leakage in AppArmor in Linux 6.17 allows local users to exhaust system resources and interrupt service. The update_sk_ctx() path transfers the plabel reference into a socket context while its caller also releases that reference unconditionally, leaving ownership accounting inconsistent. Low-privileged local access that exercises the AppArmor UNIX-socket path can consume resources until the system crashes or stops serving work.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-72461
Published
Aug 15, 2026
Updated
Aug 15, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
CWE-401, CWE-911, 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=6.17
  2. Affected versionversion=88fec3526e84123997ecebd6bb6778eb4ce779b7 <045dbe89ac31709abd73390d0805d52fece7ef39
  3. Affected versionversion=88fec3526e84123997ecebd6bb6778eb4ce779b7 <6d25e7b47616cb2db43351210929c8f19dc305a3
  4. Affected versionversion=88fec3526e84123997ecebd6bb6778eb4ce779b7 <b8642f1478982a97ca2eb59f70f631a9de42ae11

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=6.17; version=88fec3526e84123997ecebd6bb6778eb4ce779b7 <045dbe89ac31709abd73390d0805d52fece7ef39; version=88fec3526e84123997ecebd6bb6778eb4ce779b7 <6d25e7b47616cb2db43351210929c8f19dc305a3; version=88fec3526e84123997ecebd6bb6778eb4ce779b7 <b8642f1478982a97ca2eb59f70f631a9de42ae11

Published CVSS scores

7.8CVE.orgCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 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
CWE-911Improper Update of Reference Count
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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