CVE-2026-98553Hinoki check available

Resource leak via skipped autofs pipe cleanup

Published Oct 18, 2026 · Updated Oct 18, 2026

Reference leakage in Linux autofs allows local users to retain pipe resources through failed filesystem initialization. In autofs_kill_sb(), autofs_catatonic_mode() returns before releasing sbi->pipe when AUTOFS_SBI_CATATONIC remains set after an initialization failure. Reaching the flaw requires access to autofs filesystem initialization; the documented consequence is a permanent file-reference leak, with no demonstrated crash or shutdown.

CVSS severityUnavailable
Unscored
EPSS probability0.21%
Next 30 days · Oct 19, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkAvailable
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Get started

Summary

What happened

Reference leakage in Linux autofs allows local users to retain pipe resources through failed filesystem initialization. In autofs_kill_sb(), autofs_catatonic_mode() returns before releasing sbi->pipe when AUTOFS_SBI_CATATONIC remains set after an initialization failure. Reaching the flaw requires access to autofs filesystem initialization; the documented consequence is a permanent file-reference leak, with no demonstrated crash or shutdown.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-98553
Published
Oct 18, 2026
Updated
Oct 18, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
Unavailable
Attack vector
local
Privileges
Unavailable

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Oct 18, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Oct 18, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=4.18
  2. Affected versionversion=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <0662b1ff9b383d5a233d344e4dc518c27a17f7b8
  3. Affected versionversion=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <34fa4c1c6e10507dc60e35a82cc9655666946cfd
  4. Affected versionversion=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <3684e2273ba94553af3c5195a46a50214a1a96e3
  5. Affected versionversion=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <4bcb371019097d0e357f097902587401c509bbc9
  6. Affected versionversion=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <a58593b501b7be5ad2bc5181bfa8cd4599be257c
  7. Affected versionversion=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <aa5e44b29ffe4eaa08cc2237fd65bc2596bc023e
  8. Affected versionversion=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <f1c57f5b16bbc3571bd479c290996c4d4e1fb931
  9. Affected versionversion=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <fc4fd0281ac80b5a3c5a2330f688f0f9d2a420b6

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesUnavailable in this record.

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=4.18; version=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <0662b1ff9b383d5a233d344e4dc518c27a17f7b8; version=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <34fa4c1c6e10507dc60e35a82cc9655666946cfd; version=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <3684e2273ba94553af3c5195a46a50214a1a96e3; version=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <4bcb371019097d0e357f097902587401c509bbc9; version=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <a58593b501b7be5ad2bc5181bfa8cd4599be257c; version=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <aa5e44b29ffe4eaa08cc2237fd65bc2596bc023e; version=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <f1c57f5b16bbc3571bd479c290996c4d4e1fb931; version=ebc921ca9b92a3cf304d99bd7b7f373ec78c7ed7 <fc4fd0281ac80b5a3c5a2330f688f0f9d2a420b6

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)
Vectorlocal
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.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Get started to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Get started