Use-after-free Vulnerability in Linux Kernel USB Gadget

CVE-2026-90045

What is CVE-2026-90045?

The Linux kernel's USB Gadget functionality has been identified with a use-after-free vulnerability. This issue arises due to improper management of memory references within the system. Specifically, the io_data structure retains a pointer to the task's memory context, but fails to maintain a reference while asynchronous requests are pending. As a result, if the associated task terminates before the request completes, it could lead to accessing freed memory, causing potential system instability or arbitrary code execution. The vulnerability has been rectified with a proper reference handling mechanism, ensuring that references are acquired when queuing read requests and released upon completion. Mitigation steps and upgrades to affected kernel versions are advised.

References