System crash via incorrect AFS endpoint free
Published Sep 25, 2026 · Updated Sep 25, 2026
Incorrect memory release in the AFS client in Linux 6.12.102 through 6.12.110 and 6.15 allows attackers to crash the kernel during server lookup. In afs_lookup_server(), candidate cleanup calls kfree() on the existing server endpoint_state even though the candidate has no endpoint state, invalidating memory still owned by the live server. Triggering the fault requires the in-kernel AFS client and a lookup path that finds an existing server while discarding a candidate; published sources do not establish attacker privileges or remote reachability.
Summary
What happened
Incorrect memory release in the AFS client in Linux 6.12.102 through 6.12.110 and 6.15 allows attackers to crash the kernel during server lookup. In afs_lookup_server(), candidate cleanup calls kfree() on the existing server endpoint_state even though the candidate has no endpoint state, invalidating memory still owned by the live server. Triggering the fault requires the in-kernel AFS client and a lookup path that finds an existing server while discarding a candidate; published sources do not establish attacker privileges or remote reachability.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-97584
- Published
- Sep 25, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 25, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- T1499
- Attack vector
- Unavailable
- Privileges
- Unavailable
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 25, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Sep 25, 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=4882ba78574e2d8c579658f65f6784b0d139d173 <044d596094af4b769fb8e1173dff0d08bd68db6c
- Affected versionversion=4882ba78574e2d8c579658f65f6784b0d139d173 <349e713039a1fd6659c27e7a66238bfa49ce37e9
- Affected versionversion=4882ba78574e2d8c579658f65f6784b0d139d173 <e5bc0fa9959dc8f7eb1afab7c039594a16a1a65c
- Affected versionversion=6.12.101 <6.12.111
- Affected versionversion=6.15
- Affected versionversion=d6aa05cd995830f6dcee7b139335edb266de38a6 <981d72663dee2fa6efaf202293e68d2b10a0d1d4
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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Activity data is delayed. The latest report is Sep 28, 2026.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
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Technologies
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