tracing/user_events: Fix use-after-free in user_event_mm_dup()
Published Aug 15, 2026
7.8
HIGHCVSS 3.1
EPSS 0.17%
Description
user_event_mm_dup() walks the parent mm's enabler list locklessly under rcu_read_lock() during fork() (from copy_process()); it does not take event_mutex:
rcu_read_lock(); list_for_each_entry_rcu(enabler, &old_mm->enablers, mm_enablers_link) enabler->event = user_event_get(orig->event);
user_event_enabler_destroy() removes an enabler from that list with list_del_rcu() and then, without waiting for a grace period, drops the enabler's user_event reference with user_event_put() and frees the enabler with kfree(). A reader that loaded the enabler before the list_del_rcu() can still be walking it, which leads to two use-after-frees:
- kfree(enabler) frees the enabler while that reader dereferences enabler->event.
- user_event_put() may drop the last reference to the user_event, which is then freed (via delayed_destroy_user_event() on a work queue), while the same reader does user_event_get(orig->event) on it.
Both are reachable by an unprivileged task that can open user_events_data: one multithreaded process that registers an enabler and then concurrently unregisters it and calls fork() triggers the race. KASAN reports a slab-use-after-free in user_event_mm_dup() during clone(), with a "refcount_t: addition on 0" warning when the user_event is freed.
The enabler use-after-free was found first; the user_event one was reported by XIAO WU, and the earlier enabler-only fix did not address it.
Defer both the user_event_put() and the kfree(enabler) to a work item queued with queue_rcu_work(), so they run only after an RCU grace period, once all readers walking the enabler list have finished. The put must run in process context because user_event_put() takes event_mutex on the last reference, so a work queue is used rather than call_rcu(). The now-unlocked put lets the locked argument of user_event_enabler_destroy() be removed; all callers are updated.
Affected products
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- Version StatusaffectedConstraints
- Version StatusaffectedConstraints
- Version StatusaffectedConstraints
- Version StatusaffectedConstraints
- Version StatusaffectedConstraints
- Version
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- Version 6.4StatusaffectedConstraints-
- Version 0StatusunaffectedConstraints<6.4
- Version 6.12.97StatusunaffectedConstraints<=6.12.*
- Version 6.18.40StatusunaffectedConstraints<=6.18.*
- Version 6.6.148StatusunaffectedConstraints<=6.6.*
- Version 7.1.5StatusunaffectedConstraints<=7.1.*
- Version 7.2StatusunaffectedConstraints<=*
- Version
Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).
| Vendor | Product | Default status | Versions | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | unaffected |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Linux | Linux | affected |
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No data.
No data.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
kernel
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
kernel
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
kernel
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
kernel-rt
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
kernel
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
kernel-rt
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
kernel
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
kernel-rt
Not affected
| Product | Package | State | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | kernel | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | kernel | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | kernel | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | kernel-rt | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | kernel | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | kernel-rt | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | kernel | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | kernel-rt | Not affected | n/a |
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
No remediation recorded yet.
Metrics
No CVSS v4.0 score for this CVE.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
1 other source (Red Hat) ▾
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
No CVSS v3.0 score for this CVE.
No CVSS v2.0 score for this CVE.
This CVE is not in the KEV list.
No CISA SSVC assessment for this CVE yet.
Estimated probability of exploitation in the wild in the next 30 days (FIRST EPSS). As of Oct 2, 2026.
Score over time
Aug–Oct 2026- EPSS v5
Percentile over time
- EPSS v5
Table of values (2 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2, 2026 | 0.17% (0.00170) | 5.75th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Aug 15, 2026 | 0.21% (0.00209) | 11.33th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
References (10)
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-72071 Vendor Advisory
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2516653 Issue Tracking
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/05b24f68f78ff3a1ef7f015f7327b35886b741f6
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/25acb6711da6fa0382744fa92bd6d42a22c1ae68
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/50fd6dd755c6e48a38af2fa4621167eea56829c2
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/95400e7039cdfeb0b53652d521d766f1698cae95
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b33ac2d39953efb12f598c0dae242c5f644ea669
- https://lore.kernel.org/linux-cve-announce/2026081519-CVE-2026-72071-db78@gregkh/T
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-72071
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-72071
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.