FKIE_CVE-2026-46002
Vulnerability from fkie_nvd - Published: 2026-05-27 14:17 - Updated: 2026-06-17 10:52
Severity
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
ext2: reject inodes with zero i_nlink and valid mode in ext2_iget()
ext2_iget() already rejects inodes with i_nlink == 0 when i_mode is
zero or i_dtime is set, treating them as deleted. However, the case of
i_nlink == 0 with a non-zero mode and zero dtime slips through. Since
ext2 has no orphan list, such a combination can only result from
filesystem corruption - a legitimate inode deletion always sets either
i_dtime or clears i_mode before freeing the inode.
A crafted image can exploit this gap to present such an inode to the
VFS, which then triggers WARN_ON inside drop_nlink() (fs/inode.c) via
ext2_unlink(), ext2_rename() and ext2_rmdir():
WARNING: CPU: 3 PID: 609 at fs/inode.c:336 drop_nlink+0xad/0xd0 fs/inode.c:336
CPU: 3 UID: 0 PID: 609 Comm: syz-executor Not tainted 6.12.77+ #1
Call Trace:
<TASK>
inode_dec_link_count include/linux/fs.h:2518 [inline]
ext2_unlink+0x26c/0x300 fs/ext2/namei.c:295
vfs_unlink+0x2fc/0x9b0 fs/namei.c:4477
do_unlinkat+0x53e/0x730 fs/namei.c:4541
__x64_sys_unlink+0xc6/0x110 fs/namei.c:4587
do_syscall_64+0xf5/0x220 arch/x86/entry/common.c:78
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f
</TASK>
WARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 646 at fs/inode.c:336 drop_nlink+0xad/0xd0 fs/inode.c:336
CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 646 Comm: syz.0.17 Not tainted 6.12.77+ #1
Call Trace:
<TASK>
inode_dec_link_count include/linux/fs.h:2518 [inline]
ext2_rename+0x35e/0x850 fs/ext2/namei.c:374
vfs_rename+0xf2f/0x2060 fs/namei.c:5021
do_renameat2+0xbe2/0xd50 fs/namei.c:5178
__x64_sys_rename+0x7e/0xa0 fs/namei.c:5223
do_syscall_64+0xf5/0x220 arch/x86/entry/common.c:78
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f
</TASK>
WARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 634 at fs/inode.c:336 drop_nlink+0xad/0xd0 fs/inode.c:336
CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 634 Comm: syz-executor Not tainted 6.12.77+ #1
Call Trace:
<TASK>
inode_dec_link_count include/linux/fs.h:2518 [inline]
ext2_rmdir+0xca/0x110 fs/ext2/namei.c:311
vfs_rmdir+0x204/0x690 fs/namei.c:4348
do_rmdir+0x372/0x3e0 fs/namei.c:4407
__x64_sys_unlinkat+0xf0/0x130 fs/namei.c:4577
do_syscall_64+0xf5/0x220 arch/x86/entry/common.c:78
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f
</TASK>
Extend the existing i_nlink == 0 check to also catch this case,
reporting the corruption via ext2_error() and returning -EFSCORRUPTED.
This rejects the inode at load time and prevents it from reaching any
of the namei.c paths.
Found by Linux Verification Center (linuxtesting.org) with Syzkaller.
References
Impacted products
| Vendor | Product | Version | |
|---|---|---|---|
| linux | linux_kernel | * | |
| linux | linux_kernel | * | |
| linux | linux_kernel | * | |
| linux | linux_kernel | * | |
| linux | linux_kernel | * | |
| linux | linux_kernel | * | |
| linux | linux_kernel | * | |
| linux | linux_kernel | 2.6.12 | |
| linux | linux_kernel | 2.6.12 | |
| linux | linux_kernel | 2.6.12 | |
| linux | linux_kernel | 2.6.12 | |
| linux | linux_kernel | 2.6.12 |
{
"affected": [
{
"affectedData": [
{
"defaultStatus": "unaffected",
"product": "Linux",
"programFiles": [
"fs/ext2/inode.c"
],
"repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
"vendor": "Linux",
"versions": [
{
"lessThan": "1b80cf48bcf0e1937af9cd6c7beb188762bbf7c5",
"status": "affected",
"version": "1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2",
"versionType": "git"
},
{
"lessThan": "9e2d67fb2b73eeff8b601e26b332128eae8147bb",
"status": "affected",
"version": "1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2",
"versionType": "git"
},
{
"lessThan": "a69a0c5156b6f0092b9fcf44517f5831a962de2d",
"status": "affected",
"version": "1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2",
"versionType": "git"
},
{
"lessThan": "32e0b925572686399243834ec99e2a9d85c62eae",
"status": "affected",
"version": "1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2",
"versionType": "git"
},
{
"lessThan": "d3af04a43db86379df7438bf8bade71685b8a239",
"status": "affected",
"version": "1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2",
"versionType": "git"
},
{
"lessThan": "2dde6377ab2e46bb80cf066c659ef016f3ad7a9b",
"status": "affected",
"version": "1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2",
"versionType": "git"
},
{
"lessThan": "470264bbec499e276a89a6431144ae58f411ea4d",
"status": "affected",
"version": "1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2",
"versionType": "git"
},
{
"lessThan": "25947cc5b2374cd5bf627fe3141496444260d04f",
"status": "affected",
"version": "1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2",
"versionType": "git"
}
]
},
{
"defaultStatus": "affected",
"product": "Linux",
"programFiles": [
"fs/ext2/inode.c"
],
"repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
"vendor": "Linux",
"versions": [
{
"status": "affected",
"version": "2.6.12"
},
{
"lessThan": "2.6.12",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "0",
"versionType": "semver"
},
{
"lessThanOrEqual": "5.10.*",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "5.10.258",
"versionType": "semver"
},
{
"lessThanOrEqual": "5.15.*",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "5.15.209",
"versionType": "semver"
},
{
"lessThanOrEqual": "6.1.*",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "6.1.175",
"versionType": "semver"
},
{
"lessThanOrEqual": "6.6.*",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "6.6.140",
"versionType": "semver"
},
{
"lessThanOrEqual": "6.12.*",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "6.12.86",
"versionType": "semver"
},
{
"lessThanOrEqual": "6.18.*",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "6.18.27",
"versionType": "semver"
},
{
"lessThanOrEqual": "7.0.*",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "7.0.4",
"versionType": "semver"
},
{
"lessThanOrEqual": "*",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "7.1",
"versionType": "original_commit_for_fix"
}
]
}
],
"source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67"
}
],
"configurations": [
{
"nodes": [
{
"cpeMatch": [
{
"criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
"matchCriteriaId": "E03287AA-1109-4662-85B8-5E824B2EA646",
"versionEndExcluding": "5.10.258",
"versionStartIncluding": "2.6.12.1",
"vulnerable": true
},
{
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"matchCriteriaId": "92385813-D91D-480D-83A1-F423D2CBB2BA",
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},
{
"criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
"matchCriteriaId": "A1A92866-F406-43B5-B2D1-CFC274753E9D",
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{
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"matchCriteriaId": "6AC88830-A9BC-4607-B572-A4B502FC9FD0",
"vulnerable": true
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{
"criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:2.6.12:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:*",
"matchCriteriaId": "476CB3A5-D022-4F13-AAEF-CB6A5785516A",
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],
"negate": false,
"operator": "OR"
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]
}
],
"cveTags": [],
"descriptions": [
{
"lang": "en",
"value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\next2: reject inodes with zero i_nlink and valid mode in ext2_iget()\n\next2_iget() already rejects inodes with i_nlink == 0 when i_mode is\nzero or i_dtime is set, treating them as deleted. However, the case of\ni_nlink == 0 with a non-zero mode and zero dtime slips through. Since\next2 has no orphan list, such a combination can only result from\nfilesystem corruption - a legitimate inode deletion always sets either\ni_dtime or clears i_mode before freeing the inode.\n\nA crafted image can exploit this gap to present such an inode to the\nVFS, which then triggers WARN_ON inside drop_nlink() (fs/inode.c) via\next2_unlink(), ext2_rename() and ext2_rmdir():\n\nWARNING: CPU: 3 PID: 609 at fs/inode.c:336 drop_nlink+0xad/0xd0 fs/inode.c:336\nCPU: 3 UID: 0 PID: 609 Comm: syz-executor Not tainted 6.12.77+ #1\nCall Trace:\n \u003cTASK\u003e\n inode_dec_link_count include/linux/fs.h:2518 [inline]\n ext2_unlink+0x26c/0x300 fs/ext2/namei.c:295\n vfs_unlink+0x2fc/0x9b0 fs/namei.c:4477\n do_unlinkat+0x53e/0x730 fs/namei.c:4541\n __x64_sys_unlink+0xc6/0x110 fs/namei.c:4587\n do_syscall_64+0xf5/0x220 arch/x86/entry/common.c:78\n entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f\n \u003c/TASK\u003e\n\nWARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 646 at fs/inode.c:336 drop_nlink+0xad/0xd0 fs/inode.c:336\nCPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 646 Comm: syz.0.17 Not tainted 6.12.77+ #1\nCall Trace:\n \u003cTASK\u003e\n inode_dec_link_count include/linux/fs.h:2518 [inline]\n ext2_rename+0x35e/0x850 fs/ext2/namei.c:374\n vfs_rename+0xf2f/0x2060 fs/namei.c:5021\n do_renameat2+0xbe2/0xd50 fs/namei.c:5178\n __x64_sys_rename+0x7e/0xa0 fs/namei.c:5223\n do_syscall_64+0xf5/0x220 arch/x86/entry/common.c:78\n entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f\n \u003c/TASK\u003e\n\nWARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 634 at fs/inode.c:336 drop_nlink+0xad/0xd0 fs/inode.c:336\nCPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 634 Comm: syz-executor Not tainted 6.12.77+ #1\nCall Trace:\n \u003cTASK\u003e\n inode_dec_link_count include/linux/fs.h:2518 [inline]\n ext2_rmdir+0xca/0x110 fs/ext2/namei.c:311\n vfs_rmdir+0x204/0x690 fs/namei.c:4348\n do_rmdir+0x372/0x3e0 fs/namei.c:4407\n __x64_sys_unlinkat+0xf0/0x130 fs/namei.c:4577\n do_syscall_64+0xf5/0x220 arch/x86/entry/common.c:78\n entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f\n \u003c/TASK\u003e\n\nExtend the existing i_nlink == 0 check to also catch this case,\nreporting the corruption via ext2_error() and returning -EFSCORRUPTED.\nThis rejects the inode at load time and prevents it from reaching any\nof the namei.c paths.\n\nFound by Linux Verification Center (linuxtesting.org) with Syzkaller."
}
],
"id": "CVE-2026-46002",
"lastModified": "2026-06-17T10:52:52.770",
"metrics": {
"cvssMetricV31": [
{
"cvssData": {
"attackComplexity": "LOW",
"attackVector": "LOCAL",
"availabilityImpact": "HIGH",
"baseScore": 5.5,
"baseSeverity": "MEDIUM",
"confidentialityImpact": "NONE",
"integrityImpact": "NONE",
"privilegesRequired": "LOW",
"scope": "UNCHANGED",
"userInteraction": "NONE",
"vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H",
"version": "3.1"
},
"exploitabilityScore": 1.8,
"impactScore": 3.6,
"source": "nvd@nist.gov",
"type": "Primary"
}
]
},
"published": "2026-05-27T14:17:17.880",
"references": [
{
"source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
"tags": [
"Patch"
],
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1b80cf48bcf0e1937af9cd6c7beb188762bbf7c5"
},
{
"source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
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},
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],
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2dde6377ab2e46bb80cf066c659ef016f3ad7a9b"
},
{
"source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
"tags": [
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"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/32e0b925572686399243834ec99e2a9d85c62eae"
},
{
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},
{
"source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
"tags": [
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"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9e2d67fb2b73eeff8b601e26b332128eae8147bb"
},
{
"source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
"tags": [
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],
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a69a0c5156b6f0092b9fcf44517f5831a962de2d"
},
{
"source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
"tags": [
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],
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d3af04a43db86379df7438bf8bade71685b8a239"
}
],
"sourceIdentifier": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
"vulnStatus": "Analyzed",
"weaknesses": [
{
"description": [
{
"lang": "en",
"value": "NVD-CWE-noinfo"
}
],
"source": "nvd@nist.gov",
"type": "Primary"
}
]
}
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Sightings
| Author | Source | Type | Date | Other |
|---|
Nomenclature
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The MITRE ATT&CK techniques below are AI-generated suggestions, inferred from the description of the
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Browse all ATT&CK techniques and the vulnerabilities related to each.
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