CVE-2026-43121: io_uring/zcrx: fix user_ref race between scrub and refill paths

Severity: medium (CVSS 4.7 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.1% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: none known
Published: 2026-05-06 · updated 2026-06-17
Weakness: CWE-362

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: io_uring/zcrx: fix user_ref race between scrub and refill paths The io_zcrx_put_niov_uref() function uses a non-atomic check-then-decrement pattern (atomic_read followed by separate atomic_dec) to manipulate user_refs. This is serialized against other callers by rq_lock, but io_zcrx_scrub() modifies the same counter with atomic_xchg() WITHOUT holding rq_lock. On SMP systems, the following race exists: CPU0 (refill, holds rq_lock) CPU1 (scrub, no rq_lock) put_niov_uref: atomic_read(uref) - 1 // window opens atomic_xchg(uref, 0) - 1 return_niov_freelist(niov) [PUSH #1] // window closes atomic_dec(uref) - wraps to -1 returns true return_niov(niov) return_niov_freelist(niov) [PUSH #2: DOUBLE-FREE] The same niov is pushed to the freelist twice, causing free_count to exceed nr_iovs. Subsequent freelist pushes then perform an out-of-bounds write (a u32 value) past the kvmalloc'd freelist array into the adjacent slab object. Fix this by replacing the non-atomic read-then-dec in io_zcrx_put_niov_uref() with an atomic_try_cmpxchg loop that atomically tests and decrements user_refs. This makes the operation safe against concurrent atomic_xchg from scrub without requiring scrub to acquire rq_lock. [pavel: removed a warning and a comment]

Affected products

Linux kernel: from 6.15 before 6.18.16; from 6.19 before 6.19.6 — fixed in 6.18.16, 6.19.6

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Linux kernel 6.18.16, 6.19.6. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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