CVE-2026-72096 in Linux
Summary
by MITRE • 08/15/2026
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
dm-verity: make error counter atomic
The error counter "v->corrupted_errs" was not atomic, thus it could be subject to race conditions. The call to dm_audit_log_target("max-corrupted-errors") may be skipped due to the races.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/15/2026
The vulnerability in question affects the Linux kernel's device mapper verity implementation which provides cryptographic verification for storage devices. This security flaw resides within the dm-verity subsystem responsible for ensuring data integrity through cryptographic checksums. The issue specifically targets the error tracking mechanism where the corrupted errors counter variable "v->corrupted_errs" lacks proper atomicity guarantees. When multiple threads or processes simultaneously access this counter during verification operations, race conditions can occur that lead to inconsistent error reporting and potential security implications.
The technical implementation flaw stems from the absence of atomic operations when incrementing or accessing the corrupted error counter variable. In concurrent environments where multiple verification operations might be occurring simultaneously, the non-atomic nature of this counter allows for scenarios where updates from different threads can overwrite each other or result in lost increments. This race condition directly impacts the dm_audit_log_target function call that is supposed to log maximum corrupted errors events for security auditing purposes. When race conditions occur during counter manipulation, the system may skip the audit logging process entirely, creating blind spots in security monitoring and incident response capabilities.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data integrity concerns into the realm of security monitoring and forensics. Attackers who can exploit this race condition might be able to manipulate error reporting mechanisms to avoid detection or create false negatives in security auditing systems. The skipped audit logging represents a significant gap in system observability, as security administrators rely on these logs to detect unusual activity patterns and potential attacks against storage integrity. This vulnerability particularly affects systems where device mapper verity is actively used for protecting critical data, such as boot partitions, system images, or sensitive storage volumes where cryptographic verification is essential.
Mitigation strategies should focus on implementing proper atomic operations for the corrupted error counter variable within the dm-verity subsystem. The fix requires modifying the code to use appropriate atomic data types or synchronization primitives that ensure exclusive access to the error counter during updates. System administrators should prioritize applying kernel patches that address this specific race condition, particularly in environments where device mapper verity is actively deployed for security-critical applications. Additionally, monitoring systems should be enhanced to detect anomalies in error reporting patterns that might indicate race condition exploitation attempts. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-362 which specifically addresses race conditions in concurrent programming and relates to ATT&CK technique T1566 for credential dumping and data manipulation attacks that could exploit such concurrency flaws.
The fix implementation must ensure that all operations involving the corrupted error counter are protected through atomic primitives or appropriate locking mechanisms. This prevents the scenario where multiple threads attempt to increment the counter simultaneously, thus maintaining accurate error tracking and preserving the integrity of security audit logs. Organizations should also consider conducting vulnerability assessments to identify systems running device mapper verity configurations that might be susceptible to similar race condition issues in other subsystems. The remediation process requires careful testing to ensure that atomic operations don't introduce performance regressions while maintaining the necessary concurrency guarantees for proper system operation.