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Linux Kernel CVE-2026-89538

| EUVDEUVD-2026-76449 CRITICAL
2026-09-11 Linux GHSA-3r47-q2hr-fjxp
9.8
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: Linux
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Severity by source

Vendor (Linux) PRIMARY
9.8 CRITICAL
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI
6.5 MEDIUM

Attacker must hold a valid krb5 GSS context (PR:L), reached over the network (AV:N); impact is an inconsistent xdr_buf / service reliability (A:H) with no confidentiality or integrity loss.

3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
4.0 AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (Linux).

CVSS VectorVendor: Linux

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Lifecycle Timeline

6
Metadata Corrected
Sep 13, 2026 - 08:40 vuln.today
tag: Information Disclosure removed
Analysis Generated
Sep 13, 2026 - 08:34 vuln.today
CVSS changed
Sep 13, 2026 - 07:22 NVD
9.8 (CRITICAL)
Patch available
Sep 11, 2026 - 21:18 EUVD
CVE Published
Sep 11, 2026 - 19:44 cve.org
CRITICAL 9.8
CVE Published
Sep 11, 2026 - 19:44 cve.org
UNKNOWN (no severity yet)

DescriptionCVE.org

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

SUNRPC: Reject krb5 v2 wrap tokens with oversized ec field

gss_krb5_unwrap_v2() sets buf->len to a logical length, which can be much smaller than head[0].iov_len (the allocated receive-page capacity). It then calls xdr_buf_trim() with a trim length derived from the 16-bit "extra count" (ec) field in the Kerberos v2 token header.

The ec field is authenticated by the post-decrypt memcmp() against the encrypted header copy, so a randomly-mutated value is rejected. However, any peer holding a valid GSS context can legitimately encrypt a token whose ec exceeds the plaintext length. Per RFC 4121, such a token is structurally malformed.

Although xdr_buf_trim() now clamps the buf->len subtraction to avoid unsigned underflow, the buffer is still left in a semantically invalid state (zero length, inconsistent iov lengths) when ec is oversized.

Reject these tokens before calling xdr_buf_trim(), giving callers a well-defined GSS_S_DEFECTIVE_TOKEN error and keeping the xdr_buf internally consistent. The wrapped blob begins at a nonzero offset -- both callers pass len as offset + opaque_len -- so buf->len still counts the offset bytes that precede the blob. Compare the trim length against the remaining wrapped segment, buf->len - offset, rather than the whole buffer; comparing against buf->len alone leaves an offset-wide window in which an oversized ec passes the test and xdr_buf_trim() cuts into the bytes ahead of the blob.

AnalysisAI

Denial-of-service / buffer-state corruption in the Linux kernel SUNRPC GSS-API layer allows a peer holding a valid Kerberos v2 (RPCSEC_GSS krb5) security context to submit a structurally malformed wrap token whose 16-bit 'extra count' (ec) field exceeds the plaintext length, leaving the xdr_buf in a semantically inconsistent state (zero length, mismatched iov lengths). The flaw affects kernels using krb5 RPC security (e.g. …

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Vulnerability AssessmentAI

Exploitation Requires the target kernel to be using RPCSEC_GSS Kerberos v5 security (e.g. … Additional conditions and limiting factors are described in the full assessment.
Risk Assessment The published CVSS 3.1 vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/C:H/I:H/A:H, 9.8) substantially overstates real-world risk. … Full risk analysis with EPSS, KEV, and SSVC signal comparison available after sign-in.
Exploit Scenario Full exploit scenario with step-by-step reproduction available after sign-in.
Remediation Vendor-released patch: upgrade to Linux 6.12.109, 6.18.50, 7.2.4, or 7.3-rc1 (or your distribution's backported equivalent) - the fix rejects oversized-ec tokens before xdr_buf_trim(), returning GSS_S_DEFECTIVE_TOKEN and keeping the xdr_buf consistent. … Detailed patch versions, workarounds, and compensating controls in full report.

Recommended ActionAI

Within 24 hours, identify all systems running NFS with sec=krb5p authentication through infrastructure inventory and network assessment tools. …

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CVE-2026-89538 vulnerability details – vuln.today

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