CVE-2026-98717Hinoki check available

Kernel crash via dummy-root shadow walk

Published Oct 18, 2026 · Updated Oct 18, 2026

A NULL dereference in Linux KVM's x86 MMU allows guest OS users to trigger a kernel crash via a nested-guest page-fault race. The shadow_walk_init_using_root function treats a zero-page-backed dummy root as a real shadow page table instead of stopping traversal. Triggering requires memory-slot creation to race with a stage-2 page fault from an L2 guest; the documented outcome is a kernel oops, not code execution.

CVSS severityUnavailable
Unscored
EPSS probability0.20%
Next 30 days · Oct 19, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkAvailable
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Summary

What happened

A NULL dereference in Linux KVM's x86 MMU allows guest OS users to trigger a kernel crash via a nested-guest page-fault race. The shadow_walk_init_using_root function treats a zero-page-backed dummy root as a real shadow page table instead of stopping traversal. Triggering requires memory-slot creation to race with a stage-2 page fault from an L2 guest; the documented outcome is a kernel oops, not code execution.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-98717
Published
Oct 18, 2026
Updated
Oct 18, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
T1499
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

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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=0e3223d8d00ac05849661f1b8b476d3caca251cf <681e31f03ec9219099a66a0f6e1bc48e1b5aa914
  2. Affected versionversion=0e3223d8d00ac05849661f1b8b476d3caca251cf <97c1dcce17ef27853860c781f9912257e6adbf7c
  3. Affected versionversion=0e3223d8d00ac05849661f1b8b476d3caca251cf <b6249c1d5665098c8bf12f8d3e4712bf04c775bc
  4. Affected versionversion=0e3223d8d00ac05849661f1b8b476d3caca251cf <e1bcabc07efd029ab414894127411129ffdb8b48
  5. Affected versionversion=6.6

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesUnavailable in this record.

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=0e3223d8d00ac05849661f1b8b476d3caca251cf <681e31f03ec9219099a66a0f6e1bc48e1b5aa914; version=0e3223d8d00ac05849661f1b8b476d3caca251cf <97c1dcce17ef27853860c781f9912257e6adbf7c; version=0e3223d8d00ac05849661f1b8b476d3caca251cf <b6249c1d5665098c8bf12f8d3e4712bf04c775bc; version=0e3223d8d00ac05849661f1b8b476d3caca251cf <e1bcabc07efd029ab414894127411129ffdb8b48; version=6.6

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

T1499Endpoint Denial of Service

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

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Your stack

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