Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2026-31686

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-04-27

Fix available

A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.6.136 / 6.12.83 or later.

See remediation →

80/100

Remediation priority · High

Zero-click Patch available

Official description

NVD · unedited

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mm/kasan: fix double free for kasan pXds kasan_free_pxd() assumes the page table is always struct page aligned. But that's not always the case for all architectures. E.g. In case of powerpc with 64K pagesize, PUD table (of size 4096) comes from slab cache named pgtable-2^9. Hence instead of page_to_virt(pxd_page()) let's just directly pass the start of the pxd table which is passed as the 1st argument. This fixes the below double free kasan issue seen with PMEM: radix-mmu: Mapped 0x0000047d10000000-0x0000047f90000000 with 2.00 MiB pages ================================================================== BUG: KASAN: double-free in kasan_remove_zero_shadow+0x9c4/0xa20 Free of addr c0000003c38e0000 by task ndctl/2164 CPU: 34 UID: 0 PID: 2164 Comm: ndctl Not tainted 6.19.0-rc1-00048-gea1013c15392 #157 VOLUNTARY Hardware name: IBM,9080-HEX POWER10 (architected) 0x800200 0xf000006 of:IBM,FW1060.00 (NH1060_012) hv:phyp pSeries Call Trace: dump_stack_lvl+0x88/0xc4 (unreliable) print_report+0x214/0x63c kasan_report_invalid_free+0xe4/0x110 check_slab_allocation+0x100/0x150 kmem_cache_free+0x128/0x6e0 kasan_remove_zero_shadow+0x9c4/0xa20 memunmap_pages+0x2b8/0x5c0 devm_action_release+0x54/0x70 release_nodes+0xc8/0x1a0 devres_release_all+0xe0/0x140 device_unbind_cleanup+0x30/0x120 device_release_driver_internal+0x3e4/0x450 unbind_store+0xfc/0x110 drv_attr_store+0x78/0xb0 sysfs_kf_write+0x114/0x140 kernfs_fop_write_iter+0x264/0x3f0 vfs_write+0x3bc/0x7d0 ksys_write+0xa4/0x190 system_call_exception+0x190/0x480 system_call_vectored_common+0x15c/0x2ec ---- interrupt: 3000 at 0x7fff93b3d3f4 NIP: 00007fff93b3d3f4 LR: 00007fff93b3d3f4 CTR: 0000000000000000 REGS: c0000003f1b07e80 TRAP: 3000 Not tainted (6.19.0-rc1-00048-gea1013c15392) MSR: 800000000280f033 <SF,VEC,VSX,EE,PR,FP,ME,IR,DR,RI,LE> CR: 48888208 XER: 00000000 <...> NIP [00007fff93b3d3f4] 0x7fff93b3d3f4 LR [00007fff93b3d3f4] 0x7fff93b3d3f4 ---- interrupt: 3000 The buggy address belongs to the object at c0000003c38e0000 which belongs to the cache pgtable-2^9 of size 4096 The buggy address is located 0 bytes inside of 4096-byte region [c0000003c38e0000, c0000003c38e1000) The buggy address belongs to the physical page: page: refcount:0 mapcount:0 mapping:0000000000000000 index:0x0 pfn:0x3c38c head: order:2 mapcount:0 entire_mapcount:0 nr_pages_mapped:0 pincount:0 memcg:c0000003bfd63e01 flags: 0x63ffff800000040(head|node=6|zone=0|lastcpupid=0x7ffff) page_type: f5(slab) raw: 063ffff800000040 c000000140058980 5deadbeef0000122 0000000000000000 raw: 0000000000000000 0000000080200020 00000000f5000000 c0000003bfd63e01 head: 063ffff800000040 c000000140058980 5deadbeef0000122 0000000000000000 head: 0000000000000000 0000000080200020 00000000f5000000 c0000003bfd63e01 head: 063ffff800000002 c00c000000f0e301 00000000ffffffff 00000000ffffffff head: ffffffffffffffff 0000000000000000 00000000ffffffff 0000000000000004 page dumped because: kasan: bad access detected [ 138.953636] [ T2164] Memory state around the buggy address: [ 138.953643] [ T2164] c0000003c38dff00: fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc [ 138.953652] [ T2164] c0000003c38dff80: fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc [ 138.953661] [ T2164] >c0000003c38e0000: fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc [ 138.953669] [ T2164] ^ [ 138.953675] [ T2164] c0000003c38e0080: fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc [ 138.953684] [ T2164] c0000003c38e0100: fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc [ 138.953692] [ T2164] ================================================================== [ 138.953701] [ T2164] Disabling lock debugging due to kernel taint

Technical summary

dbcve analysis

How this class of weakness works · CWE-415

The same block of memory is freed twice, corrupting the allocator's bookkeeping in ways an attacker can shape toward code execution. It usually stems from tangled ownership of a pointer. The fix is clear, single ownership of each allocation and clearing pointers once they are freed.

General guidance for the double free class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

Affected products & versions

NVD · CPE data

Linux KernelOperating system

Affected:>= 4.19, < 6.6.136>= 6.7, < 6.12.83>= 6.13, < 6.18.24>= 6.19, < 6.19.14>= 7.0, < 7.0.1

CVSS breakdown

From the vector

Attack vector: Local
Complexity: Low
Privileges: Low
User interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: High
Availability: High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Remediation

dbcve · scoped

Upgrade available Upgrade to 6.6.136 / 6.12.83 / 6.18.24 or later

Fixed in 6.6.1366.12.836.18.24

Vendor patch git.kernel.org →

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to kernel 6.6.136+, 6.12.83+, 6.18.24+, or 6.19.14+ (depending on which branch you are on)

Identify the current running kernel version using `uname -r`
Determine which kernel branch your version belongs to (4.19+, 6.7-6.12, 6.13-6.18, or 6.19+)
Upgrade the Linux kernel to a version that includes the fix: for 6.6.x branch upgrade to 6.6.136 or later; for 6.7-6.12 branch upgrade to 6.12.83 or later; for 6.13-6.18 branch upgrade to 6.18.24 or later; for 6.19+ branch upgrade to 6.19.14 or later
On Debian/Ubuntu: `apt update && apt install linux-image-<version>` and reboot
On RHEL/CentOS: `yum update kernel` and reboot
On Fedora: `dnf update kernel` and reboot
Verify the new kernel is running and the vulnerability is resolved

Caveat Kernel upgrades may require rebuilding out-of-tree kernel modules; ensure critical drivers/modules are compatible with the target version before rebooting

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

We can perform the upgrade in your staging environment and verify nothing breaks — typical engagement from $1,950. Get the upgrade done

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally

dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-31686 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-31686 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2026-31686?

The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.

The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
A config change or rule that shut the vector down
A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here

Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data

At a glance

A fix existsUpgrade to 6.6.136 / 6.12.83 or later

Severity 7.8 High

Exploit likelihood EPSS, next 30 days 0.1%

Affects: Linux Kernel

Remediation

A high-priority fix

Get a fix

Estimated effortfrom ~11 hrs

ComplexityModerate

Typical engagementfrom $1,950

What a fix involves

We scope it with you and confirm a fixed quote
A specialist builds a reviewed fix
You deploy it to staging first
Optional re-test once it’s live

A high-priority vulnerability. Send your environment and a specialist will scope CVE-2026-31686 and return a fixed quote and timeline.

You’ll deal with our team directly and deploy the reviewed fix to staging first — never straight to production.

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

Scan for this in your stack

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Practitioner notes

No notes yet

Official description

Technical summary

Affected products & versions

CVSS breakdown

Remediation

References