# CVE-2026-23260: regmap: maple: free entry on mas_store_gfp() failure

> A memory leak in the Linux kernel regmap maple cache allows attackers to cause denial of service by exhausting system memory.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 18 Mar 2026
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2026-23260, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-23260, GHSA-5crp-hwj6-6www, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-11-CVE-2026-23260, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-12-CVE-2026-23260, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2204-CVE-2026-23260, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2026-23260, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-23260

## What is CVE-2026-23260?

CVE-2026-23260 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 18 Mar 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

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

regmap: maple: free entry on mas_store_gfp() failure

regcache_maple_write() allocates a new block ('entry') to merge
adjacent ranges and then stores it with mas_store_gfp().
When mas_store_gfp() fails, the new 'entry' remains allocated and
is never freed, leaking memory.

Free 'entry' on the failure path; on success continue freeing the
replaced neighbor blocks ('lower', 'upper').

Weakness: CWE-401 (Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-23260?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2026-23260?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-23260 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-23260 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-2026-23260 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-23260 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 18 Mar 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-23260 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-2026-23260/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-23260/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-23260
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-23260
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-23260

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-23260/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.