CVE-2026-53361: af_unix: Set gc_in_progress to true in unix_gc().

Severity: high (CVSS 7.1 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.2% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: none known
Published: 2026-07-04 · updated 2026-10-19
Weakness: CWE-362

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: af_unix: Set gc_in_progress to true in unix_gc(). Igor Ushakov reported that unix_gc() could run with gc_in_progress being false if the work is scheduled while running: Thread 1 Thread 2 Thread 3 -------- -------- -------- unix_schedule_gc() unix_schedule_gc() `- if (!gc_in_progress) `- if (!gc_in_progress) |- gc_in_progress = true | `- queue_work() | unix_gc() <----------------/ | | |- gc_in_progress = true ... `- queue_work() | | `- gc_in_progress = false | | unix_gc() <---------------------------------------------' | ... /* gc_in_progress == false */ | `- gc_in_progress = false unix_peek_fpl() relies on gc_in_progress not to confuse GC by MSG_PEEK. Let's set gc_in_progress to true in unix_gc().

Affected products

Linux kernel: from 6.1.141 before 6.2; from 6.6.93 before 6.6.144; from 6.9 before 6.12.95; from 6.13 before 6.18.38; from 6.19 before 7.1; 7.1-rc1, 7.1-rc2 — fixed in 6.12.95, 6.18.38, 6.2, 6.6.144, 7.1

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Linux kernel 6.12.95, 6.18.38, 6.2, 6.6.144. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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