Race Condition in Linux Kernel Affecting Memory Management

CVE-2026-80775

What is CVE-2026-80775?

A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's futex implementation may lead to a race condition affecting memory management. The issue arises when a multi-threaded application uses vfork and creates a scenario where two processes attempt to allocate a futex hash table concurrently. If both processes invoke specific system calls simultaneously, a conflict may occur, resulting in one process overwriting the reference counter of the futex hash, leading to possible memory corruption. This vulnerability can allow tasks to access freed memory, leading to instability and potential security risks. The fix introduced ensures proper locking during futex reference allocation, mitigating the risk of concurrent access that can compromise the system's stability.

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