CVE Intelligence
High Memory corruption

CVE-2026-43158 — xfs: fix freemap adjustments when adding xattrs to leaf blocks

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: xfs: fix freemap adjustments when adding xattrs to leaf blocks xfs/592 and xfs/794 both trip this assertion in the leaf block freemap adjustment code after ~20 minutes of running on my test VMs: ASSERT(ichdr->firstused >= ichdr->count * sizeof(xfs_attr_leaf_entry_t) + xfs_attr3_leaf_hdr_size(leaf)); Upon enabling quite a lot more debugging code, I narrowed this down to fsstress trying to set a local extended attribute with namelen=3 and valuelen=71. This results in an entry size of 80 bytes. At the start of xfs_attr3_leaf_add_work, the freemap looks like this: i 0 base 448 size 0 rhs 448 count 46 i 1 base 388 size 132 rhs 448 count 46 i 2 base 2120 size 4 rhs 448 count 46 firstused = 520 where "rhs" is the first byte past the end of the leaf entry array. This is inconsistent -- the entries array ends at byte 448, but freemap[1] says there's free space starting at byte 388! By the end of the function, the freemap is in worse shape: i 0 base 456 size 0 rhs 456 count 47 i 1 base 388 size 52 rhs 456 count 47 i 2 base 2120 size 4 rhs 456 count 47 firstused = 440 Important note: 388 is not aligned with the entries array element size of 8 bytes. Based on the incorrect freemap, the name area starts at byte 440, which is below the end of the entries array! That's why the assertion triggers and the filesystem shuts down. How did we end up here? First, recall from the previous patch that the freemap array in an xattr leaf block is not intended to be a comprehensive map of all free space in the leaf block. In other words, it's perfectly legal to have a leaf block with: * 376 bytes in use by the entries array * freemap[0] has [base = 376, size = 8] * freemap[1] has [base = 388, size = 1500] * the space between 376 and 388 is free, but the freemap stopped tracking that some time ago If we add one xattr, the entries array grows to 384 bytes, and freemap[0] becomes [base = 384, size = 0]. So far, so good. But if we add a second xattr, the entries array grows to 392 bytes, and freemap[0] gets pushed up to [base = 392, size = 0]. This is bad, because freemap[1] hasn't been updated, and now the entries array and the free space claim the same space. The fix here is to adjust all freemap entries so that none of them collide with the entries array. Note that this fix relies on commit 2a2b5932db6758 ("xfs: fix attr leaf header freemap.size underflow") and the previous patch that resets zero length freemap entries to have base = 0.

Published May 6, 2026 · Updated Oct 13, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP · CNA: Linux

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.
How the score was calculated
  • EPSS 0.5% (30-day exploitation probability)+6
  • Technical severity (high)+6

The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).

Triage

Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.

Exploitation
Not confirmed
Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.
EPSS FIRST
0.47%
ahead of 39% of scored CVEs · Oct 15, 2026
Affects
Linux
Linux and 1 more
CVSS base
8.8
High · 2 source(s)

Remediation

Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.

  • Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
  • Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
  • Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
  • Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
  • Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
  • Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
  • Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
  • Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)

First 24 hours

Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.

  1. Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Linux Linux, Linux Linux Kernel).
  2. Apply the fixed version or the patch documented under Remediation.
  3. Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (memory corruption), errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

VendorProductVersionsStatusSource
Linux Linux version 2.6.12≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 and < 3eefc0c2b78444b64feeb3783c017d6adc3cd3ce≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 and < 24ce71852f2cee6581e2cbebc15489ed52bf63b7≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 and < 43f3b18679615a93bd848afde3602ba160637a46≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 and < ef42a8766ff3fdf51cf72fb36d0859c09d134478≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 and < 38613c01f69e1e77e6b8acab1e8ac665d01c2f15≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 and < a396b3d73d51355e50acdb403ba9c4cae4c1174e≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 and < 6a8737afbccc340e718e0b22577312826390be8b
and 1 more ≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 and < d08976725355b9d54d8332fce223fa281cc304a5
Vulnerable CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Linux Linux Kernel version 2.6.12-rc4version 2.6.12-rc5≥ 2.6.12.1 and < 5.10.252version 2.6.12-rc3version 2.6.12-rc2version 2.6.12≥ 6.19 and < 6.19.6≥ 6.13 and < 6.18.16
and 4 more ≥ 6.7 and < 6.12.75≥ 6.2 and < 6.6.128≥ 5.16 and < 6.1.165≥ 5.11 and < 5.15.202
Vulnerable NIST National Vulnerability Database

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Every base score collected

Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.

ScoreVersionSeverityExpl.ImpactScored by
8.8 CVSS 3.1 High 2.8 5.9 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 via NIST National Vulnerability Database
8.8 CVSS 3.1 High — — Linux via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H (score shown at the top: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67)

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-787 · Out-of-bounds Write

Other CVEs with this weakness →

EPSS over time FIRST

Oct 13, 2026 → Oct 15, 2026 · 3 reading(s) · max 0.47%

Detection

Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.

  • Prioritize edge telemetry for the network-reachable component (proxy, WAF, IDS/IPS).
  • Correlate service crashes/restarts with inbound traffic; repeated crashes may indicate attempts.
web/proxy/WAF logsnetwork IDS/IPSendpoint telemetry (EDR)crash dumps

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

  • 2026
  • Affected products added · linux/linux
    Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • Record published
    Oct 13, 2026
  • Fix documented
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVSS changed · 8.8
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Source status changed · → Analyzed
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Record created in this database
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVE published
    May 6, 2026 · Linux

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

  • 1× Official description updated · Oct 13, 2026 – Oct 13, 2026

References

8 on the record

Elsewhere on this site

Linux
every CVE for this vendor
Memory corruption
same class
CWE-787
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

  • CVE-2026-99999 ipv4: validate checksum_start before completing checksum 1d
  • CVE-2026-98432 ipv4: free inet_opt and ireq_opt after an RCU grace period 1d
  • CVE-2026-98424 wifi: cfg80211: undo netns switch if renaming the wiphy fails 2d
  • CVE-2026-98425 wifi: mac80211: don't warn when an IBSS has no channel to scan 2d
  • CVE-2026-98426 wifi: mwifiex: fix IRQ leak using wrong index in MSI-X error path 2d
  • CVE-2026-98427 net/sched: codel: bound the dropping loop per dequeue call 2d

Not in any source we poll

Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.

  • No CISA SSVC assessment.
  • No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
  • No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
  • No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.

Answered from this record

Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.

What should defenders know first?

CVE-2026-43158 is "xfs: fix freemap adjustments when adding xattrs to leaf blocks", rated High. It affects Linux (Linux); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 8.8 describes technical severity. EPSS 0.47% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.

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