CVE Intelligence
Medium Memory corruption

CVE-2026-53385 — vc_screen: fix null-ptr-deref in vcs_notifier() during concurrent vcs_write

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: vc_screen: fix null-ptr-deref in vcs_notifier() during concurrent vcs_write A KASAN null-ptr-deref was observed in vcs_notifier(): BUG: KASAN: null-ptr-deref in vcs_notifier+0x98/0x130 Read of size 2 at addr qmp_cmd_name: qmp_capabilities, arguments: {} The issue is a race condition in vcs_write(). When the console_lock is temporarily dropped (to copy data from userspace), the vc_data pointer obtained from vcs_vc() may become stale. After re-acquiring the lock, vcs_vc() is called again to re-validate the pointer. If the vc has been deallocated in the meantime, vcs_vc() returns NULL, and the while loop breaks (with written > 0). However, after the loop, vcs_scr_updated(vc) is still called with the now-NULL vc pointer, leading to a null pointer dereference in the notifier chain (vcs_notifier dereferences param->vc). Fix this by adding a NULL check for vc before calling vcs_scr_updated().

Published Jul 19, 2026 · Updated Oct 15, 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 0.1% (30-day exploitation probability)+0
  • Technical severity (medium)+3

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
0.13%
ahead of 2% of scored CVEs · Oct 15, 2026
Affects
Linux
Linux and 1 more
CVSS base
5.5
Medium · 1 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)
  • 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 a4e3c4c65ae8510e01352c9a4347e05c035b2ce2≥ 3338d0b9acde770ee588eead5cac32c25e7048fc and < ff4806202749a51938236214adc0281481a57366≥ 8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 and < 8232fca738011ca2ec865b46ec721d1796dc0580≥ 8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 and < 73049768ad57145acd337102c5aa3c788e6642c8≥ 8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 and < 7cc3dd79777f6ae4625ec37e84dd18a26dc88bde≥ 8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 and < 74be188eb2dc1c99d63986167b9a67d415fe7326≥ 8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 and < 09a43e81279b8da15526da09877134b8bcf618b0≥ 8fb9ea65c9d1338b0d2bb0a9122dc942cdd32357 and < a287620312dc6dcb9a093417a0e589bf30fcf38a
and 13 more version 934de9a9b659785fed3e820bc0c813a460c71feaversion 0deff678157333d775af190f84696336cdcccd6d≥ e3d1adcad5b73c7ed0c7edb35ab68abcaa45cf67 and < b6bbb85cf45bf0b070e741997fe0af3a772c5ad5version 1de42e7653d6714a7507ba6696151a1fa028c69f≥ 5.10.181 and < 5.10.260≥ 5.15.113 and < 5.15.211≥ 6.1.30 and < 6.1.177≥ 4.14.327 and < 4.15≥ 4.19.284 and < 4.20≥ 5.4.244 and < 5.5≥ 6.3.4 and < 6.4version 6.4≥ 11dddfbb7a4e62489b01074d6c04d9d1b42e4047 and < 43a6281790273c1b0a9ab76609ff0245b968f1e6
Vulnerable CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Linux Linux Kernel ≥ 4.19.284 and < 4.20≥ 4.14.327 and < 4.15≥ 5.4.244 and < 5.5≥ 5.10.181 and < 5.10.260≥ 5.15.113 and < 5.15.211≥ 6.1.30 and < 6.1.177≥ 6.3.4 and < 6.4≥ 6.4.1 and < 6.6.144
and 10 more ≥ 6.7 and < 6.12.95≥ 6.13 and < 6.18.37≥ 6.19 and < 7.0.14≥ 7.1 and < 7.1.2version 6.4version 6.4-rc3version 6.4-rc4version 6.4-rc5version 6.4-rc6version 6.4-rc7
Vulnerable NIST National Vulnerability Database

Attack characteristics

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

Attack vector
Local
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
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
5.5 CVSS 3.1 Medium 1.8 3.6 nvd@nist.gov via NIST National Vulnerability Database
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H (score shown at the top: nvd@nist.gov)

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-476 · NULL Pointer Dereference

Other CVEs with this weakness →

Detection

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

  • Local/physical vector: focus on endpoint telemetry (EDR) from affected hosts.
  • Correlate service crashes/restarts with inbound traffic; repeated crashes may indicate attempts.
endpoint telemetry (EDR)crash dumps

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

  • 2026
  • Affected products added · linux/linux
    Oct 15, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • Record published
    Oct 15, 2026
  • Fix documented
    Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVSS changed · 5.5
    Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Source status changed · → Analyzed
    Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Record created in this database
    Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVE published
    Jul 19, 2026 · Linux

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

  • 1× Official description updated · Oct 15, 2026 – Oct 15, 2026

References

9 on the record

Elsewhere on this site

Linux
every CVE for this vendor
Memory corruption
same class
CWE-476
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-2026-53385 is "vc_screen: fix null-ptr-deref in vcs_notifier() during concurrent vcs_write", rated Medium. It affects Linux (Linux); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 5.5 describes technical severity. EPSS 0.13% 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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