Unauthorized NVMe writes via missing ioctl authorization
Published Sep 17, 2026 · Updated Sep 18, 2026
Improper authorization in the Linux kernel NVMe ioctl path allows local users to write through read-only descriptors or across partitions. NVME_IOCTL_SUBMIT_IO passes untrusted I/O requests to nvme_submit_io without invoking nvme_cmd_allowed() or supplying partition and write-open state. An unprivileged process that can open an NVMe namespace device can bypass file-descriptor and partition boundaries, causing unauthorized disk reads or writes.
Summary
What happened
Improper authorization in the Linux kernel NVMe ioctl path allows local users to write through read-only descriptors or across partitions. NVME_IOCTL_SUBMIT_IO passes untrusted I/O requests to nvme_submit_io without invoking nvme_cmd_allowed() or supplying partition and write-open state. An unprivileged process that can open an NVMe namespace device can bypass file-descriptor and partition boundaries, causing unauthorized disk reads or writes.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-90227
- Published
- Sep 17, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 18, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- CWE-284, T1068
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- Unavailable
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 17, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Sep 18, 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?
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- Affected versionversion=3.3
- Affected versionversion=a53295b6998f62d961c29e54051c1cf1d738c2b3 <736b7c6adc7a65c4411beff197b6a634f7a6ca27
- Affected versionversion=a53295b6998f62d961c29e54051c1cf1d738c2b3 <95b0591d51dbf9e618d7845883d535e88ad7c8af
- Affected versionversion=a53295b6998f62d961c29e54051c1cf1d738c2b3 <b116e9dae433ff631f94c36c61a7a78fe400ed1e
- Affected versionversion=a53295b6998f62d961c29e54051c1cf1d738c2b3 <b53d495c7f0db46b6748b5ade48371a10dd5d3bc
- Affected versionversion=a53295b6998f62d961c29e54051c1cf1d738c2b3 <c35cd98eed1a863e8dd51073953563cd8c907f68
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
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Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Activity data is delayed. The latest report is Sep 28, 2026.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
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