CVE-2026-31444 ksmbd: fix use-after-free and NULL deref in smb_grant_oplock()

What is CVE-2026-31444?

CVE-2026-31444 is a critical use after free vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 22 Apr 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

Official description

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

ksmbd: fix use-after-free and NULL deref in smb_grant_oplock()

smb_grant_oplock() has two issues in the oplock publication sequence:

1) opinfo is linked into ci->m_op_list (via opinfo_add) before add_lease_global_list() is called. If add_lease_global_list() fails (kmalloc returns NULL), the error path frees the opinfo via __free_opinfo() while it is still linked in ci->m_op_list. Concurrent m_op_list readers (opinfo_get_list, or direct iteration in smb_break_all_levII_oplock) dereference the freed node.

2) opinfo->o_fp is assigned after add_lease_global_list() publishes the opinfo on the global lease list. A concurrent find_same_lease_key() can walk the lease list and dereference opinfo->o_fp->f_ci while o_fp is still NULL.

Fix by restructuring the publication sequence to eliminate post-publish failure:

- Set opinfo->o_fp before any list publication (fixes NULL deref). - Preallocate lease_table via alloc_lease_table() before opinfo_add() so add_lease_global_list() becomes infallible after publication. - Keep the original m_op_list publication order (opinfo_add before lease list) so concurrent opens via same_client_has_lease() and opinfo_get_list() still see the in-flight grant. - Use opinfo_put() instead of __free_opinfo() on err_out so that the RCU-deferred free path is used.

This also requires splitting add_lease_global_list() to take a preallocated lease_table and changing its return type from int to void, since it can no longer fail.

Weakness: CWE-416

Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-31444?

It affects 1 product.

Products include Linux kernel.

How do I fix CVE-2026-31444?

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-2026-31444 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-31444 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 AZL-83324, BELL-CVE-2026-31444, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-31444, GHSA-8vw8-r4jr-vp93, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-31444.