# CVE-2015-8963: Race condition in n/a

> Local attackers can exploit a race condition in the Linux kernel to gain privileges or cause a denial of service via use-after-free.

- **Severity:** High 7.0 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 16 Nov 2016
- **Updated:** 15 Oct 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2015-8963, GHSA-m878-6q5c-p7qv, UBUNTU-CVE-2015-8963

## What is CVE-2015-8963?

CVE-2015-8963 is a high-severity 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

Race condition in kernel/events/core.c in the Linux kernel before 4.4 allows local users to gain privileges or cause a denial of service (use-after-free) by leveraging incorrect handling of an swevent data structure during a CPU unplug operation.

Weakness: CWE-416 (Use After Free), CWE-362 (Concurrent Execution using Shared Resource with Improper Synchronization)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2015-8963?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2015-8963?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2015-8963 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2015-8963 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2015-8963 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2015-8963 is a high-severity 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.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2015-8963 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux kernel. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-8963/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-8963/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2015-8963
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2015-8963
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2015-8963

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-8963/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.