Linux kernel statmount: use-after-free of unmounted mount's parent
Key facts
- Attack vector
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- Privileges required
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- User interaction
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- Attack complexity
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- Impact type
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- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
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- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 1 without a fix
No CVSS vector from any source. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
The statmount system call with STATMOUNT_BY_FD can be given a file descriptor on a mount that was unmounted deliberately and is kept alive only by that descriptor. If the mount was still attached to its parent when unmounted, the parent is unmounted too, and nothing pins it for the child. The final mntput() unmounts the children under mount_lock alone and then frees the parent, so statmount_mnt_basic() can read m->mnt_parent after the parent is gone. The Linux kernel is affected from 7.0; Red Hat rates the issue Moderate, lists no fix for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6, and CISA has not added it to KEV.
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: statmount: read the parent of an unmounted mount under mount_lock statmount_mnt_basic() reads the ids of the parent through m->mnt_parent with namespace_sem held for reading. That's fine for a mount that is in a namespace. Everything above it is pinned by that namespace. STATMOUNT_BY_FD also accepts a file descriptor on a mount that has been unmounted on purpose and that only the file descriptor keeps alive. If that mount stayed attached to its parent when it was unmounted the parent is unmounted as well and nothing pins it for the child. The final mntput() unmounts the children under mount_lock alone and frees the parent afterwards. Concurrently, statmount_mnt_basic() reads m->mnt_parent twice while that can happen and can easily dereference a mount that's already gone. Read the parent of an unmounted mount under mount_lock. The parent can't be put while it is held and both ids come from the same mount. A mounted mount's parent is pinned by the namespace and a mount can't leave its namespace while namespace_sem is held, so the common case takes no global lock.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.
Affected products
Remediation
Update the Linux kernel to 7.2.11 or 7.3. The fix reads the parent of an unmounted mount under mount_lock, so the parent cannot be freed during the read, and the common mounted case still takes no global lock.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-06
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 7.2.11, 7.3
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
Not affected: 6 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
- 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
- 2026-10-23 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-98994
- 2026-10-23 Alias added: GHSA-2fr8-4rp8-wvj2
- 2026-10-29 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-29 CVSS score added · Red Hat
- 2026-11-06 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
References
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Sources
- CVE-2026-98994 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-98994 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-2fr8-4rp8-wvj2 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-98994 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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