Linux Kernel up to 6.12.110/6.18.52 ALSA snd_es18xx_mixer 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.
4.8	$0-$5k	0.11+

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability classified as problematic has been found in Linux Kernel up to 6.12.110/6.18.52. This impacts the function snd_es18xx_mixer of the component ALSA. The manipulation leads to null pointer dereference. This vulnerability is listed as CVE-2026-97418. The attack must be carried out locally. There is no available exploit. It is recommended to upgrade the affected component.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability, which was classified as problematic, has been found in Linux Kernel up to 6.12.110/6.18.52. This issue affects the function snd_es18xx_mixer of the component ALSA. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a null pointer dereference vulnerability. Using CWE to declare the problem leads to 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. Impacted is availability. The summary by CVE is:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ALSA: es18xx: check control allocation before private data setup snd_es18xx_mixer() creates controls with snd_ctl_new1() and then stores bookkeeping pointers or sets private_free before calling snd_ctl_add(). snd_ctl_new1() can return NULL on allocation failure, so those writes can dereference a NULL control pointer. Check the returned control pointers before using them and return -ENOMEM on allocation failure.

It is possible to read the advisory at git.kernel.org. The identification of this vulnerability is CVE-2026-97418 since 09/24/2026. The exploitation is known to be easy. Attacking locally is a requirement. It demands that the victim is doing some kind of user interaction. Technical details of the vulnerability are known, but there is no available exploit.

Upgrading to version 6.12.111 or 6.18.53 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch 978079238f40f1a08ddb12ce208c484246f6a1b0/d88c24b76f285df9d206751e22c28e2613258cb3/422e42b7c2b882ba1d16d4afc8891bcea7c4de93 is able to eliminate this problem. The best possible mitigation is suggested to be upgrading to the latest version.

Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

Type

• Operating System

Vendor

• Linux

Name

• Kernel

Version

• 6.12.110
• 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
• 6.18.52

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: 5.0
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 4.8

VulDB Base Score: 5.0
VulDB Temp Score: 4.8
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: Partially
Local: Yes
Remote: Partially

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 6.12.111/6.18.53
Patch: 978079238f40f1a08ddb12ce208c484246f6a1b0/d88c24b76f285df9d206751e22c28e2613258cb3/422e42b7c2b882ba1d16d4afc8891bcea7c4de93

Timelineinfo

09/24/2026 Advisory disclosed
09/24/2026 +0 days CVE reserved
09/24/2026 +0 days VulDB entry created
09/24/2026 +0 days VulDB entry last update

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: kernel.org

Advisory: git.kernel.org
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2026-97418 (🔒)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2026-97418
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-409583

Entryinfo

Created: 09/24/2026 19:28
Changes: 09/24/2026 19:28 (59)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.

Discussion

Do you want to use VulDB in your project?

Use the official API to access entries easily!