CVE-2026-98076 PUBLISHED

tracing/probes: Fix use-after-free on field name/type of events with multiple probes

Assigner: Linux
Reserved: 25.09.2026 Published: 25.09.2026 Updated: 25.09.2026

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

tracing/probes: Fix use-after-free on field name/type of events with multiple probes

The fields of a probe-based dynamic event (kprobe, uprobe, eprobe and fprobe events) are created in traceprobe_define_arg_fields() by handing the probe_arg name/type strings to trace_define_field(), which only stores the pointers without copying. Those strings are owned by the trace_probe and are freed when that probe is removed.

An event can have several probes attached. The field list is defined only once, by the first probe that registers the event, but it is kept alive by any surviving sibling probe. Deleting just that first probe by symbol -

# primary A: fields are defined from A's args echo 'p:kprobes/ev vfs_read a1=$arg1' > kprobe_events # append B: shares A's event call echo 'p:kprobes/ev vfs_write a1=$arg1' >> kprobe_events # delete only A (matched by symbol), B survives echo '-:kprobes/ev vfs_read' >> kprobe_events

frees A's args (trace_probe_cleanup() -> traceprobe_free_probe_arg()), but trace_probe_unlink() keeps the trace_probe_event because the probe list is not empty. The event call stays registered via B while its fields now reference freed memory. Any field lookup then reads it, e.g.

echo 'a1 == 1' > events/kprobes/ev/filter

BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in strcmp+0xa7/0xb0 Call Trace: strcmp trace_find_event_field parse_pred process_preds create_filter apply_event_filter event_filter_write

field->name references parg->name (kstrdup'd, freed with the probe) and, for array arguments, field->type references parg->fmt (kmalloc'd, freed with the probe) - the scalar type otherwise points at the static fmttype rodata, which is safe.

Have traceprobe_define_arg_fields() duplicate the name and type strings and anchor the copies on the trace_probe_event, which embeds the event call and outlives every individual probe; trace_probe_event_free() releases them.

The reproducer above triggers reliably; the field lookup and the delete both run under event_mutex, so this is a dangling reference after removal rather than a race.

The issue was found by the autokbug dynamic kernel fuzzer at Tencent Yunding Lab.

Product Status

Vendor Linux
Product Linux
Versions Default: unaffected
  • affected from ca89bc071d5e4e981dcc52e0ca90f4500d332e42 to 68ae584169c7a41fc9bc4677c1d368983cf44b21 (excl.)
  • affected from ca89bc071d5e4e981dcc52e0ca90f4500d332e42 to 411c9080a776577664531b4f7d3ee53b7a747ba8 (excl.)
  • affected from ca89bc071d5e4e981dcc52e0ca90f4500d332e42 to 178ff2e011e21fbebdf57f5d58a408fe59136d82 (excl.)
  • affected from ca89bc071d5e4e981dcc52e0ca90f4500d332e42 to 86b7a239ec6b14a7544200ede85474c6f5526049 (excl.)
Vendor Linux
Product Linux
Versions Default: affected
  • Version 5.4 is affected
  • unaffected from 0 to 5.4 (excl.)
  • unaffected from 6.12.111 to 6.12.* (incl.)
  • unaffected from 6.18.53 to 6.18.* (incl.)
  • unaffected from 7.2.7 to 7.2.* (incl.)
  • unaffected from 7.3-rc2 to * (incl.)

References