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CVE-2026-98979

Linux: namespace: refuse an automount below a mount that is in no namespace

Linux LinuxOperating systems
CVSS
NoneNot scored
ExploitationNo known exploitationNot in CISA KEV, which does not prove it is unexploitedCISA KEV
Exploit odds (EPSS)No scoreNo FIRST EPSS score in this snapshot yet
Fixed in95fb7c259b86f5521f04973040ad492f2bef6f82Also 35f2013f83ef16f9f0331c4c3a8e8d161580d574, 494c57572d2d5bc2839553ed41aabe92ed0f587c and 1 moreCVE List
Published23 Oct 2026Updated 23 Oct 2026CVE List

What fixes it

  • 95fb7c259b86f5521f04973040ad492f2bef6f82LinuxCVE List
  • 35f2013f83ef16f9f0331c4c3a8e8d161580d574LinuxCVE List
  • 494c57572d2d5bc2839553ed41aabe92ed0f587cLinuxCVE List
  • 776e20e4fdc23c23687b511ffdc80047878049d3LinuxCVE List

A fixed version on one release line is not the upgrade target for every line. Check your exact version and any vendor backports.

Description

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

namespace: refuse an automount below a mount that is in no namespace

It's possible to add autmounts even when the parent mount isn't in the mount namespace of the caller. The only requirement we have is that the parent mount namespace must not be NULL, i.e., unmounted.

Problem is that clone_private_mount() has MNT_NS_INTERNAL which makes that trivially true. So that passes the test and attach_recursive_mnt() accepts that as a mount point and funny enough, count_mounts() dereferences MNT_NS_INTERNAL. The problem is it is an error pointer...

So we can reach this in userspace via fanotify. A filesystem mark on the lower filesystem of an overlay reports paths on the layer clone and reading the event hands out a descriptor on it. For example with debugfs as the lower layer it goes kaboom:

openat(evfd, "tracing", O_DIRECTORY)

Oops: general protection fault KASAN: null-ptr-deref in range [0x1d0-0x1d7] RIP: 0010:count_mounts+0x35/0x200 attach_recursive_mnt finish_automount

And since that sleeping beauty happens under namespace_sem held for writing every mount operation on the system blocks from then on. Congrats.

Use is_mounted() instead which rejects unmounted and internal mounts alike. The open fails with EINVAL just as it did before clone_private_mount() used MNT_NS_INTERNAL.

Text from CVE List

Affected versions 12

  • Linuxaffected: df820f8de4e481222b17f9bcee7b909ae8167529 before 95fb7c259b86f5521f04973040ad492f2bef6f82CVE List
  • Linuxaffected: df820f8de4e481222b17f9bcee7b909ae8167529 before 35f2013f83ef16f9f0331c4c3a8e8d161580d574CVE List
  • Linuxaffected: df820f8de4e481222b17f9bcee7b909ae8167529 before 494c57572d2d5bc2839553ed41aabe92ed0f587cCVE List
  • Linuxaffected: df820f8de4e481222b17f9bcee7b909ae8167529 before 776e20e4fdc23c23687b511ffdc80047878049d3CVE List
  • Linuxaffected: df820f8de4e481222b17f9bcee7b909ae8167529 before ba985ce08471c555af2a2fbe217c1bc2e72a6d8cCVE List
  • Linuxaffected: 5.8CVE List
  • Linuxunaffected: all versions before 5.8CVE List
  • Linuxunaffected: 6.6.160 through 6.6.*CVE List
  • Linuxunaffected: 6.12.113 through 6.12.*CVE List
  • Linuxunaffected: 6.18.57 through 6.18.*CVE List
  • Linuxunaffected: 7.2.11 through 7.2.*CVE List
  • Linuxunaffected: 7.3CVE List

References 5