CVE-2015-8961 Use after free in n/a

What is CVE-2015-8961?

CVE-2015-8961 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 16 Nov 2016. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

Official description

The __ext4_journal_stop function in fs/ext4/ext4_jbd2.c in the Linux kernel before 4.3.3 allows local users to gain privileges or cause a denial of service (use-after-free) by leveraging improper access to a certain error field.

Weakness: CWE-416

Which versions are affected by CVE-2015-8961?

It affects 1 product.

Products include Linux kernel.

How do I fix CVE-2015-8961?

Apply the vendor's patch.

Upgrade to the fixed version. These bugs are found with fuzzing and sanitisers and avoided by memory-safe languages. More about Use after free.

Is CVE-2015-8961 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2015-8961 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

• CVE-2026-53266 Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write Exploited High 8.8
• CVE-2013-6282 Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation Exploited High 8.8
• CVE-2022-0185 Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow Exploited High 8.4
• CVE-2013-2094 Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation Exploited High 8.4
• CVE-2026-53362 Linux Kernel Unspecified Exploited High 7.8

All Linux kernel vulnerabilities

Sources

• CVE record
• NVD
• OSV
• GitHub advisory
• How this page is made

Also known as DEBIAN-CVE-2015-8961, GHSA-66r4-mrh6-vw83, UBUNTU-CVE-2015-8961.