Linux Kernel Vulnerability Leading to Mlocked Folio Handling Issues

CVE-2026-89757

What is CVE-2026-89757?

A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's memory management causes mlocked folios to be improperly handled during eviction processing. The affected 'sort_folio()' function fails to adhere to the PG_lru usage convention, leading to potential misuse of memory flags, which affects the mlock count. This issue may result in folios incorrectly remaining unevictable, causing inflated accounting and potential inconsistent behavior in memory compaction and isolation operations. Proper isolation and generic shrink paths are necessary to address the underlying problem and restore expected behavior without performance concerns.

References