NULL pointer dereference in Linux kernel - CVE-2026-98314
Published: October 7, 2026
Vulnerability identifier: #VU153702
CSH Severity: Low
CVSS v4: 5.7 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N]
CVE-ID: CVE-2026-98314
CWE-ID: CWE-476
Exploitation vector: Local access
Exploit availability:
No public exploit available
Vulnerability details
The vulnerability allows a local user to cause a denial of service.
The vulnerability exists due to a null pointer dereference in ALSA PCM timer initialization when concurrent timer callbacks execute before the registered timer's private data is initialized. A local user can read /proc/asound/timers concurrently with PCM timer initialization to cause a denial of service.
Affected software
Linux kernel
Debian Linux
linux (Debian package)
Debian Linux
linux (Debian package)
How to mitigate CVE-2026-98314
Install security update from vendor's repository.
Linux kernel - update to 7.0 rc3
linux (Debian package) - update to 6.12.113-1
linux (Debian package) - update to 6.12.113-1
External References
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0b349249d572633d7c8cdeb917623d1676a2b7c3
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1e713f9bb2ac583521f06b0eb4e22440b1e3d078
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/27f167e117eca310661fbcbacb352ea08face067
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/555d168bd98daa46daccc68c908201388c834293
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/686c7a6af1eea8d2a919303e4c6bbec3de79dbdc
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8c869d5cf5affb20994bdbb60e7d46d65c91b55f
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d63f5a9f8121fb43c798056d7dd34c58f47185d7
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e1eee8f16628f8b6bcae0a366fd6a2dd65e71edd