Linux Kernel up to 6.12.108/6.18.49/7.2.3 Audit audit_del_rule use after free

CVSS Meta Temp Score
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Current Exploit Price (≈)
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CTI Interest Score
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9.5$5k-$25k0.41+

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability categorized as very critical has been discovered in Linux Kernel up to 6.12.108/6.18.49/7.2.3. Affected is the function audit_del_rule of the component Audit. The manipulation results in use after free. This vulnerability is cataloged as CVE-2026-89643. The attack may be launched remotely. There is no exploit available. It is advisable to upgrade the affected component.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability classified as very critical has been found in Linux Kernel up to 6.12.108/6.18.49/7.2.3. Affected is the function audit_del_rule of the component Audit. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a use after free vulnerability. CWE is classifying the issue as CWE-416. Referencing memory after it has been freed can cause a program to crash, use unexpected values, or execute code. This is going to have an impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. CVE summarizes:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: audit: avoid dropping live tree ref on fsnotify rule autoremove audit_del_rule() is used for both netlink deletion templates and internal fsnotify autoremove. The former passes a parsed template which owns a temporary tree reference; the latter passes the installed entry itself. The unconditional audit_put_tree() at the end of audit_del_rule() assumes the template case. For mixed AUDIT_DIR plus AUDIT_EXE rules, an fsnotify autoremove event therefore drops the installed rule's live tree reference. Repeating this across rules sharing the same tree can free the tree while another rule still references it, and a later autoremove dereferences the freed pathname while comparing rules. Move the temporary-tree put to audit_rule_change(), the caller that owns deletion templates. Keep it in the AUDIT_DEL_RULE cleanup so both successful deletion and -ENOENT still release the parser-owned tree. [PM: dropped unnecessary comment for line length reasons]

The advisory is shared for download at git.kernel.org. This vulnerability is traded as CVE-2026-89643 since 09/11/2026. The exploitability is told to be easy. It is possible to launch the attack remotely. There are known technical details, but no exploit is available. The current price for an exploit might be approx. USD $5k-$25k (estimation calculated on 09/12/2026).

Upgrading to version 6.12.109, 6.18.50, 7.2.4 or 7.3-rc1 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch cf37b61b5420fd4600fe78cf8c24da6e4d9bfe28/636a99bab36ba27515363d325866c0273ac83b3e/583cf579b32d99e3fe4e9c8ecc4d852e3708fbec/783f0f0974c156aca630f4ffff248671082a098d 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

Vendor

Name

Version

License

Website

CPE 2.3info

CPE 2.2info

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 9.9
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 9.5

VulDB Base Score: 9.9
VulDB Temp Score: 9.5
VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv2info

AVACAuCIA
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💳💳💳💳💳💳
💳💳💳💳💳💳
VectorComplexityAuthenticationConfidentialityIntegrityAvailability
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VulDB Base Score: 🔒
VulDB Temp Score: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

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

Physical: No
Local: No
Remote: Yes

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

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Threat Intelligenceinfo

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

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Upgrade
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔒

Upgrade: Kernel 6.12.109/6.18.50/7.2.4/7.3-rc1
Patch: cf37b61b5420fd4600fe78cf8c24da6e4d9bfe28/636a99bab36ba27515363d325866c0273ac83b3e/583cf579b32d99e3fe4e9c8ecc4d852e3708fbec/783f0f0974c156aca630f4ffff248671082a098d

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-2026-89643 (🔒)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2026-89643
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-402984

Entryinfo

Created: 09/12/2026 02:25
Changes: 09/12/2026 02:25 (59)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

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