Linux Kernel up to 6.6.156/6.12.109/6.18.51/7.2.5 ksmbd ksmbd_stop_durable_scavenger null pointer dereference

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.
9.5	$0-$5k	0.39

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 6.6.156/6.12.109/6.18.51/7.2.5 and classified as very critical. This impacts the function ksmbd_stop_durable_scavenger of the component ksmbd. Executing a manipulation can lead to null pointer dereference. This vulnerability is registered as CVE-2026-90165. It is possible to launch the attack remotely. No exploit is available. It is suggested to upgrade the affected component.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 6.6.156/6.12.109/6.18.51/7.2.5. It has been declared as very critical. This vulnerability affects the function ksmbd_stop_durable_scavenger of the component ksmbd. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a null pointer dereference vulnerability. The CWE definition for the vulnerability is CWE-476. A NULL pointer dereference occurs when the application dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid, but is NULL, typically causing a crash or exit. As an impact it is known to affect confidentiality, integrity, and availability. CVE summarizes:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: smb/server: fix invalid pointer dereference in ksmbd_stop_durable_scavenger() See the procedure below: ksmbd_launch_ksmbd_durable_scavenger durable_scavenger_running = true server_conf.dh_task = kthread_run() // fail, dh_task is an ERR_PTR() server_ctrl_handle_reset ksmbd_stop_durable_scavenger kthread_stop(server_conf.dh_task) // invalid pointer

The advisory is available at git.kernel.org. This vulnerability was named CVE-2026-90165 since 09/11/2026. The exploitation appears to be easy. The attack can be initiated remotely. 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 09/17/2026).

Upgrading to version 6.6.157, 6.12.110, 6.18.52, 7.2.6 or 7.3-rc1 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch 3f8651f6bb52159c9e23993c77a2b51b9505ad64/af9cb997d13a17029a0d3863e33f4c837e27a8ae/b2d78c199dfd983638662ace0612d4fade3dbea1/a2eb72b4d53bb9d8d6c00f3f794eaccb4b1ce5ed/bef46b604732d83f8da29f782868de4d25bf972c 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

• 6.6.156
• 6.12.109
• 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
• 6.18.51
• 7.2.0
• 7.2.1
• 7.2.2
• 7.2.3
• 7.2.4
• 7.2.5

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: 9.9
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 9.5

VulDB Base Score: 9.9
VulDB Temp Score: 9.5
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: Null pointer dereference
CWE: CWE-476 / CWE-404
CAPEC: 🔒
ATT&CK: 🔒

Physical: No
Local: No
Remote: Yes

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 6.6.157/6.12.110/6.18.52/7.2.6/7.3-rc1
Patch: 3f8651f6bb52159c9e23993c77a2b51b9505ad64/af9cb997d13a17029a0d3863e33f4c837e27a8ae/b2d78c199dfd983638662ace0612d4fade3dbea1/a2eb72b4d53bb9d8d6c00f3f794eaccb4b1ce5ed/bef46b604732d83f8da29f782868de4d25bf972c

Timelineinfo

09/11/2026 CVE reserved
09/17/2026 +6 days Advisory disclosed
09/17/2026 +0 days VulDB entry created
09/17/2026 +0 days VulDB entry last update

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: kernel.org

Advisory: git.kernel.org
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2026-90165 (🔒)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2026-90165
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-406690

Entryinfo

Created: 09/17/2026 20:19
Changes: 09/17/2026 20:19 (59)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

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Discussion

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