Kernel crash via unchecked nullable tracepoint argument
Published Sep 25, 2026 · Updated Sep 25, 2026
NULL pointer dereference in Linux 6.12.6 through 6.12.110 and 6.13 allows attackers to crash the kernel via JITed BPF. btf_ctx_access() treats sched_process_wait argument 0 as a trusted non-null pointer even though wait4(-1) and waitid(P_ALL) pass a NULL wo_pid, so the verifier accepts an unchecked dereference without fault protection. Reachability requires a JIT-compiled BPF program attached to the raw sched_process_wait tracepoint and a wait for any child.
Summary
What happened
NULL pointer dereference in Linux 6.12.6 through 6.12.110 and 6.13 allows attackers to crash the kernel via JITed BPF. btf_ctx_access() treats sched_process_wait argument 0 as a trusted non-null pointer even though wait4(-1) and waitid(P_ALL) pass a NULL wo_pid, so the verifier accepts an unchecked dereference without fault protection. Reachability requires a JIT-compiled BPF program attached to the raw sched_process_wait tracepoint and a wait for any child.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-98059
- Published
- Sep 25, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 25, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- T1499.004
- 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?
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- Affected versionversion=6.12.6 <6.12.111
- Affected versionversion=6.13
- Affected versionversion=838a10bd2ebfe11a60dd67687533a7cfc220cc86 <3c03a1b8ded858685a73c1ba4080adef99db4544
- Affected versionversion=838a10bd2ebfe11a60dd67687533a7cfc220cc86 <a453d6e3b8e8e1a321c8744d6189d763af9287d0
- Affected versionversion=838a10bd2ebfe11a60dd67687533a7cfc220cc86 <b9205e936dde9a94e93376c8de6195b740bcd5d2
- Affected versionversion=b2fc4b17fc13810ef440fb323fad3981cd174985 <bee862c79cb7e0e5c33b2df2e3a31d164705120d
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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