CVE-2026-80960: dm-pcache: validate on-media seg_num against the cache device size

Severity: unknown
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: 2026-09-11 · updated 2026-10-19

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: dm-pcache: validate on-media seg_num against the cache device size seg_num is read from the crc32c-only superblock, so whoever supplies the cache device on a table load (CAP_SYS_ADMIN) controls it. It sizes cache->segments[] and is the value every later on-media segment id is bounded against, yet it is never checked against the device. Because cache_dev->mapping is the direct map of the pmem, CACHE_DEV_SEGMENT() for a segment id past the device resolves to ordinary kernel memory beyond the mapping; a new-cache init reaching such an id has cache_seg_init() -> cache_dev_zero_range() memset() 12 KiB over that memory -- an out-of-bounds write into the kernel heap at table load. A zero seg_num makes the segment allocations ZERO_SIZE_PTR. Reject a seg_num that is zero, larger than the device can hold, or larger than PCACHE_CACHE_SEGS_MAX before it is used.

Affected products

Linux kernel: 6.18 — fixed in 7.3

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Linux kernel 7.3. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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