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CVE-2026-98861
fprobe: Use guard(rcu_sched_notrace) and check rcu_is_watching()
Published 2026-10-18 (today) by the Linux kernel CNA. Subsystem kernel/trace. Debian urgency: unimportant.
What to do, per Debian release
Debian's own status for CVE-2026-98861 in every release this site tracks, and what each one means in practice. Every status below is the one the Debian Security Team publishes for this CVE. source
| Release | Status | Version | What this means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 12bookworm | not affected | 6.1.190-1 | Nothing to do. bookworm never shipped the vulnerable code. |
| Debian 13trixie | not affected | 6.12.113-1 | Nothing to do. trixie never shipped the vulnerable code. |
| Debian 14forky | fixed | 7.2.10-1 | Update the kernel and reboot. Fixed in 7.2.10-1. A running kernel keeps the old code until the machine restarts. |
| Debian unstablesid | fixed | 7.2.10-1 | Update the kernel and reboot. Fixed in 7.2.10-1. A running kernel keeps the old code until the machine restarts. |
The vulnerability
What the bug is
unregister_fprobe() and unregister_fprobe_async() (used by BPF kprobe-multi) rely on standard RCU grace periods (synchronize_rcu() and call_rcu()) to wait until in-flight fprobe handlers complete before freeing the fprobe. However, if an fprobe handler executes while RCU is not watching (such as in the idle loop or nohz_full extended quiescent states), standard RCU does not track preemption-disabled sections. Consequently, synchronize_rcu() does not wait for those executions, which can lead to a use-after-free if the fprobe is freed immediately after unregistration. Ensure handlers exit early when !rcu_is_watching(). Furthermore, fprobe_fgraph_entry() and fprobe_ftrace_entry() previously used guard(rcu)() and rcu_read_lock(), which invoke lockdep on every hit under CONFIG_PROVE_LOCKING. This adds overhead and can cause lockdep recursion if probed functions interact with lockdep. Since rhltable_lookup() and rhl_for_each_entry_rcu() use rcu_dereference_all_check() (which checks rcu_read_lock_any_held()), holding preemption disabled via rcu_read_lock_sched_notrace() is fully valid and sufficient so long as rcu_is_watching() is true. Define and use guard(rcu_sched_notrace)() across fprobe_ftrace_entry(), fprobe_fgraph_entry(), and fprobe_return(). This eliminates fast-path rcu_read_lock() and lockdep overhead while guaranteeing safe grace period synchronization.
Where it lives
The fix touches these files. If the subsystem is one you do not use, the practical exposure is lower, though the package is still the vulnerable one.
kernel/trace/fprobe.c
- What this is
- TRACINGMAINTAINERS section matched on kernel/trace/ · linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org · Maintained
Check it on the machine
grep -wE 'CONFIG_FPROBE|CONFIG_FUNCTION_TRACER|CONFIG_RETHOOK|CONFIG_RING_BUFFER|CONFIG_TRACEPOINTS|CONFIG_TRACE_CLOCK|CONFIG_TRACING' /boot/config-$(uname -r)Reads the booted kernel's own configuration, on the machine and nowhere else. =y is built in, =m is a module, and an is not set line means the code is not there.
Show whether Debian builds this, per release
Debian does not build this code in 1 release. It does build it in 3 releases, so the answer depends on which release the machine runs.
- bookwormn
- trixieYnot built on arm64/arm64, arm64/arm64-16k, arm64/cloud-arm64, arm64/rt/arm64, armel/rpi, armhf/armmp, armhf/armmp-lpae, armhf/rt/armmp, riscv64/riscv64
- forky, sidYnot built on arm64/arm64, arm64/arm64-16k, arm64/cloud-arm64, arm64/rt-arm64, armhf/armmp, armhf/armmp-lpae
- n
- not enabled on any flavour - this release does not build the code
- Y
- built in where it is built at all; some flavours do not build it
- Build switches
- CONFIG_FPROBE, CONFIG_FUNCTION_TRACER, CONFIG_RETHOOK, CONFIG_RING_BUFFER, CONFIG_TRACEPOINTS, CONFIG_TRACE_CLOCK, CONFIG_TRACING
- Reads as
- all on means the file is compiled; any one off means it is not.
From the configuration Debian publishes for every kernel flavour it builds. It covers only the architectures Debian ships a linux-config package for, and nothing about a kernel you built yourself. Debian's own status above stays authoritative about the source package.MAINTAINERS kbuild Makefiles Debian linux-config packages
Signals
- Published
- 2026-10-18 (today)source
- CVSS
- no vector published, unrated
- Attack vector
- not published
- EPSS
- not scored
- CISA KEV
- not listedthe KEV catalogue
- Debian urgency
- unimportantsource
- Subsystem
- kernel/trace
Upstream fixes
The versions the CNA records as introducing and fixing this, and the commit for each. source
| Introduced | Fixed in | Commit |
|---|---|---|
| 6.18.34 | 6.18.56 | a85d0f00671b |
| 7.1 | 7.2.10 | dd4a0d499363 |
| 7.1 | 7.3 | e0a624919040 |
| 7.0.11 | 0 | 0 |
Why the CNA scored it this way
The kernel CNA published no CVSS vector and no reasoning for CVE-2026-98861, which is why it is shown as unrated rather than given an invented score. 6,405 of the 20,413 CVEs here carry reasoning; this is not one of them.