CVE-2026-98264

Freed vring access via premature virtqueue deletion

Published Oct 6, 2026 · Updated Oct 6, 2026

A memory-safety flaw in the Linux ALSA virtio-sound driver allows access to freed vring memory during device teardown. The virtsnd_remove() and virtsnd_freeze() paths delete virtqueues before resetting the device, while modern virtio-pci can leave those queues active. Exposure requires virtio-sound removal, freeze, or probe-failure cleanup after DRIVER_OK; the public fix does not establish an attacker-controlled trigger or code execution.

CVSS severityUnavailable
Unscored
EPSS probability0.17%
Next 30 days · Oct 19, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

A memory-safety flaw in the Linux ALSA virtio-sound driver allows access to freed vring memory during device teardown. The virtsnd_remove() and virtsnd_freeze() paths delete virtqueues before resetting the device, while modern virtio-pci can leave those queues active. Exposure requires virtio-sound removal, freeze, or probe-failure cleanup after DRIVER_OK; the public fix does not establish an attacker-controlled trigger or code execution.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-98264
Published
Oct 6, 2026
Updated
Oct 6, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
Unavailable
Attack vector
Unavailable
Privileges
Unavailable

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Oct 6, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Oct 6, 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.

  1. Affected versionversion=5.13
  2. Affected versionversion=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <3e24b4a6acfd3bedb2200334595facd767c9a897
  3. Affected versionversion=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <500a8401415ab085555785c3c339747e378abd36
  4. Affected versionversion=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <6c05d00af307560e6a9f1631d6270d3df5aa2272
  5. Affected versionversion=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <830012feadc228a938514a6487862dcf56af7e66
  6. Affected versionversion=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <8edc3669e3e22f0123a1114c3a03df9abc4cd465
  7. Affected versionversion=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <f070cce7cb361d5389b18f3ff6bd3d25a7596369

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorUnavailable in this record.
Required privilegesUnavailable in this record.

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=5.13; version=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <3e24b4a6acfd3bedb2200334595facd767c9a897; version=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <500a8401415ab085555785c3c339747e378abd36; version=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <6c05d00af307560e6a9f1631d6270d3df5aa2272; version=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <830012feadc228a938514a6487862dcf56af7e66; version=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <8edc3669e3e22f0123a1114c3a03df9abc4cd465; version=de3a9980d8c34b2479173e809afa820473db676a <f070cce7cb361d5389b18f3ff6bd3d25a7596369

Published CVSS scores

No CVSS assessment is available in this record.

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.

Activity data is delayed. The latest report is Sep 28, 2026.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 22, 2026Sep 28, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 28, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
VectorUnavailable
PrivilegesUnavailable
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

No sourced classifications are available.

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

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Technologies

Your stack

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