Kernel crash via misclassified borrowed BPF pointer
Published Sep 25, 2026 · Updated Sep 25, 2026
NULL-pointer dereference in the BPF verifier in Linux 6.8 through 7.2.6 allows local users to crash the kernel via a crafted BPF program. The verifier misclassifies an RCU-loaded borrowed kptr as an owning reference, treats a fallible bpf_refcount_acquire() result as non-NULL, and permits that NULL result to reach bpf_obj_drop(). The attacker must be able to load the crafted program; successful exploitation crashes the host rather than exposing or modifying data.
Summary
What happened
NULL-pointer dereference in the BPF verifier in Linux 6.8 through 7.2.6 allows local users to crash the kernel via a crafted BPF program. The verifier misclassifies an RCU-loaded borrowed kptr as an owning reference, treats a fallible bpf_refcount_acquire() result as non-NULL, and permits that NULL result to reach bpf_obj_drop(). The attacker must be able to load the crafted program; successful exploitation crashes the host rather than exposing or modifying data.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-98038
- Published
- Sep 25, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 25, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- T1499
- Attack vector
- local
- 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?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=1b12171533a9bb23cf6fba7262b479028b65e1e8 <85074498228a2500ea8b8039c49cc1ab8ad5328f
- Affected versionversion=1b12171533a9bb23cf6fba7262b479028b65e1e8 <dc36739e5cc9f60485418a910b42bc95339218d2
- Affected versionversion=6.8
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
Your stack
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