Linux Kernel up to 6.18.50/7.2.3 HID mcp_i2c_smbus_read/mcp2221_raw_event rxbuf/rxbuf_size use after free

CVSS Meta Temp Score CVSS is a standardized scoring system to determine possibilities of attacks. The Temp Score considers temporal factors like disclosure, exploit and countermeasures. The unique Meta Score calculates the average score of different sources to provide a normalized scoring system.	Current Exploit Price (≈) Our analysts are monitoring exploit markets and are in contact with vulnerability brokers. The range indicates the observed or calculated exploit price to be seen on exploit markets. A good indicator to understand the monetary effort required for and the popularity of an attack.	CTI Interest Score Our Cyber Threat Intelligence team is monitoring different web sites, mailing lists, exploit markets and social media networks. The CTI Interest Score identifies the interest of attackers and the security community for this specific vulnerability in real-time. A high score indicates an elevated risk to be targeted for this vulnerability.
8.4	$0-$5k	0.41+

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability described as very critical has been identified in Linux Kernel up to 6.18.50/7.2.3. Affected by this vulnerability is the function mcp_i2c_smbus_read/mcp2221_raw_event of the component HID. Such manipulation of the argument rxbuf/rxbuf_size leads to use after free. This vulnerability is traded as CVE-2026-89622. An attack has to be approached locally. There is no exploit available. Upgrading the affected component is recommended.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 6.18.50/7.2.3. It has been rated as very critical. Affected by this issue is the function mcp_i2c_smbus_read/mcp2221_raw_event of the component HID. The manipulation of the argument rxbuf/rxbuf_size with an unknown input leads to a use after free vulnerability. Using CWE to declare the problem leads to CWE-416. Referencing memory after it has been freed can cause a program to crash, use unexpected values, or execute code. Impacted is confidentiality, integrity, and availability. CVE summarizes:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: HID: mcp2221: clear rxbuf after I2C/SMBus transfer completes mcp_i2c_smbus_read() stores the caller-supplied buffer pointer in mcp->rxbuf for the duration of a transfer but never clears it when the transfer finishes or times out. Once the caller frees or reuses the buffer, mcp->rxbuf becomes a dangling pointer. A delayed or spurious MCP2221_I2C_GET_DATA report can then drive mcp2221_raw_event() to memcpy device data into the freed memory, causing a write use-after-free. Route all return paths through a single exit point that clears mcp->rxbuf and mcp->rxbuf_size, so that the existing !mcp->rxbuf guard in the raw_event handler can reject any report arriving after the transfer has ended.

The advisory is available at git.kernel.org. This vulnerability is handled as CVE-2026-89622 since 09/11/2026. The exploitation is known to be easy. Local access is required to approach this attack. Technical details are known, but there is no available exploit. The structure of the vulnerability defines a possible price range of USD $0-$5k at the moment (estimation calculated on 09/12/2026).

Upgrading to version 6.18.51, 7.2.4 or 7.3-rc1 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch 03c34309eb1bce1b3b5f7c4a94b703f419120383/968546b676d992dd1da3e057d40598231f725996/db2333f88729c8aae062cb171ed058725ff5c901 is able to eliminate this problem. The best possible mitigation is suggested to be upgrading to the latest version.

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Productinfo

Type

• Operating System

Vendor

• Linux

Name

• Kernel

Version

• 6.18.0
• 6.18.1
• 6.18.2
• 6.18.3
• 6.18.4
• 6.18.5
• 6.18.6
• 6.18.7
• 6.18.8
• 6.18.9
• 6.18.10
• 6.18.11
• 6.18.12
• 6.18.13
• 6.18.14
• 6.18.15
• 6.18.16
• 6.18.17
• 6.18.18
• 6.18.19
• 6.18.20
• 6.18.21
• 6.18.22
• 6.18.23
• 6.18.24
• 6.18.25
• 6.18.26
• 6.18.27
• 6.18.28
• 6.18.29
• 6.18.30
• 6.18.31
• 6.18.32
• 6.18.33
• 6.18.34
• 6.18.35
• 6.18.36
• 6.18.37
• 6.18.38
• 6.18.39
• 6.18.40
• 6.18.41
• 6.18.42
• 6.18.43
• 6.18.44
• 6.18.45
• 6.18.46
• 6.18.47
• 6.18.48
• 6.18.49
• 6.18.50
• 7.2.0
• 7.2.1
• 7.2.2
• 7.2.3

License

• open-source

Website

• Vendor: https://www.kernel.org/

CPE 2.3info

• 🔒
• 🔒
• 🔒

CPE 2.2info

• 🔒
• 🔒
• 🔒

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 8.8
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 8.4

VulDB Base Score: 8.8
VulDB Temp Score: 8.4
VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv2info

AV	AC	Au	C	I	A
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳

Vector	Complexity	Authentication	Confidentiality	Integrity	Availability
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock

VulDB Base Score: 🔒
VulDB Temp Score: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Use after free
CWE: CWE-416 / CWE-119
CAPEC: 🔒
ATT&CK: 🔒

Physical: Partially
Local: Yes
Remote: No

Availability: 🔒
Status: Not defined
Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔒

0-Day	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Today	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Upgrade
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔒

Upgrade: Kernel 6.18.51/7.2.4/7.3-rc1
Patch: 03c34309eb1bce1b3b5f7c4a94b703f419120383/968546b676d992dd1da3e057d40598231f725996/db2333f88729c8aae062cb171ed058725ff5c901

Timelineinfo

09/11/2026 CVE reserved
09/12/2026 +1 days Advisory disclosed
09/12/2026 +0 days VulDB entry created
09/12/2026 +0 days VulDB entry last update

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: kernel.org

Advisory: git.kernel.org
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2026-89622 (🔒)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2026-89622
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-402974

Entryinfo

Created: 09/12/2026 02:20
Changes: 09/12/2026 02:20 (60)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

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Discussion

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