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TI-2026-79809 Aliases CVE-2026-99016GHSA-5mv4-wx47-m6wh

Tagged user pointers bypass checks in Linux RISC-V futex operations

Priority LOW 33Published · Updated

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 RISC-V futex code in the Linux kernel from 6.13 checks the untagged form of a user pointer but then runs its atomic operations on the raw, still-tagged address. A local unprivileged user with the tagged address ABI enabled can make FUTEX_WAKE_OP perform atomic read-modify-write operations on an arbitrary kernel address and read the outcome through the FUTEX_OP_CMP result.

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: riscv: futex: untag the user pointer before the atomic access access_ok() checks untagged_addr(uaddr), but arch_futex_atomic_op_inuser() and futex_atomic_cmpxchg_inatomic() hand the raw uaddr to the inline asm amoswap/amoadd/.../lr.w+sc.w through the "+m" (*uaddr) operand. When the tagged address ABI is enabled (CONFIG_RISCV_ISA_SUPM, prctl PR_SET_TAGGED_ADDR_CTRL with PMLEN != 0), those two addresses differ: a user pointer whose top PMLEN bits hold a tag passes access_ok() after untagging, but the atomic is then performed on the still-tagged raw address. Supervisor-mode data accesses are not subject to the U-mode pointer masking (that is governed by menvcfg.PMM, which the kernel does not set), so hardware does not strip the tag for the kernel's own access. With Sv57 and PMLEN=16 the tag bits overlap the canonical-address bits, so a tagged pointer can name a canonical kernel virtual address (e.g. in the linear map) whose untagged form is a valid user address. An unprivileged process can thus make FUTEX_WAKE_OP perform an atomic read-modify-write on an arbitrary kernel address, with the matching FUTEX_OP_CMP_* result serving as a read oracle. get_user()/put_user()/raw_copy_{to,from}_user() already untag the pointer after the access_ok() check; do the same in the futex helpers so the atomic operates on the address that was actually validated.

Why it matters now

EPSS 0.00173 6th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix Fixed Linux (Linux): 6.18.57, 7.2.11, 7.3

SSVC decision points

Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.

Affected products

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed inStatusSource
LinuxLinux6.13 and later6.18.57, 7.2.11, 7.3Patch availableCNA
  • Linux VendorLinux Affected 6.13 and later Fixed in 6.18.57, 7.2.11, 7.3 Patch available CNA

CPE names Threatist (inferred) · 1

Inferred from how NVD named this product before; not given by a source.

CPEVersionsRoleVendor
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*——Linux
  • cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions — — ·Linux

Remediation

Upgrade the Linux kernel to 6.18.57, 7.2.11, 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 6.18.57, 7.2.11, 7.3

Vendor assessments

Red Hat

Red Hat rating: Important. 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

  1. 2026-10-23 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-99016
  2. 2026-10-23 Alias added: GHSA-5mv4-wx47-m6wh
  3. 2026-10-24 CVSS score added · CNA
  4. 2026-10-24 Priority changed: LOW → MEDIUM
  5. 2026-10-24 Priority changed: MEDIUM → LOW
  6. 2026-10-29 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
  7. 2026-10-29 CVSS score added · Red Hat
  8. 2026-10-31 Affected versions changed · Red Hat

References

  • TI-2025-26358 tls: fix handling of zero-length records on the rx_list KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
  • TI-2026-38352 netfilter: bridge: make ebt_snat ARP rewrite writable KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
  • TI-2021-02452 Incorrect authorization in Ubuntu linux kernel KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
  • TI-2013-05264 The (1) get_user and (2) put_user API functions in the Linux kernel before 3.5.5 on the… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
  • TI-2022-00125 Integer overflow in kernel KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
  • TI-2013-01864 The perf_swevent_init function in kernel/events/core.c in the Linux kernel before 3.8.9… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
See all 21727 →

Sources