Use after free in Linux kernel scheduler cache grouping
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA.
Summary
The Linux kernel from 7.2 frees scheduling statistics tied to a memory descriptor while another CPU can still access them during task scheduling accounting, which causes a use after free. A local user with low privileges can trigger this to cause high impact to confidentiality, integrity and availability.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-06
Description from the CNA
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sched/cache: Decouple sched_cache_group from mm to fix UAF Currently the sched cache grouping is by mm and the scheduling statistics sched_cache_stat lives in the mm structure. This ties the life cycle of scheduling stats with mm. In account_mm_sched(), the scheduling stats are accessed by task->mm->sc_stat. However, a task may be switching mm on one CPU when another CPU is running account_mm_sched(), and possibly accessing the old mm that was freed. This problem was found when running tests with KASAN by Hyunwoo: https://lore.kernel.org/lkml/apPb-Dr4nPYuHQOK@v4bel/ Instead of serializing the mm access by introducing extra acquisition of rq lock in the mm free path, extract sched_cache_stat from mm_struct, rename it as sched_cache_group and manage its life cycle apart from mm_struct with its own ref counting. This allows us in the next patch access sched_cache_group directly from task, and add a refcount on sched_cache_group when a task links to it. This prevents the use after free issue when accessing stale and released old mm and its sched cache stat a task switches to a new mm while account_mm_sched() is done elsewhere. The other benefit of this restructure is in the future, the grouping of tasks to a LLC would have the flexibility to be associated with a user defined grouping, or cgroup, cookie group, numa_group or others instead of just with a single mm address space. Rename sched_cache_stat to sched_cache_group and turn it into a refcounted object allocated from mm_struct. The mm_struct now holds a pointer (sched_cache_grp) to this object instead of embedding it.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.
Affected products
Remediation
Upgrade the Linux kernel to 7.2.9 or 7.3, which contain the fix.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-06
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 7.2.9, 7.3
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
Not affected: 7 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
- Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
- Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 5
Timeline
- 2026-10-12 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-98385
- 2026-10-12 Alias added: GHSA-984h-v76f-94jc
- 2026-10-12 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-12 CVSS score added · Red Hat
- 2026-10-19 Fix available: Linux/[email protected] · CNA
- 2026-10-24 CVSS score added · CNA
- 2026-11-06 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
References
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Sources
- CVE-2026-98385 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-98385 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-984h-v76f-94jc · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-98385 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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