# CVE-2026-43285: mm/slab: do not access current->mems_allowed_seq if !allow_spin

> A race condition in the Linux kernel slab allocator can cause a deadlock when accessed from NMI context, leading to system denial of service.

- **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:** 8 May 2026
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2026-43285, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-43285, GHSA-v2vh-p96v-7cc2, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-43285

## What is CVE-2026-43285?

CVE-2026-43285 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 8 May 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:

mm/slab: do not access current->mems_allowed_seq if !allow_spin

Lockdep complains when get_from_any_partial() is called in an NMI
context, because current->mems_allowed_seq is seqcount_spinlock_t and
not NMI-safe:

  ================================
  WARNING: inconsistent lock state
  6.19.0-rc5-kfree-rcu+ #315 Tainted: G                 N
  --------------------------------
  inconsistent {INITIAL USE} -> {IN-NMI} usage.
  kunit_try_catch/9989 [HC1[1]:SC0[0]:HE0:SE1] takes:
  ffff889085799820 (&____s->seqcount#3){.-.-}-{0:0}, at: ___slab_alloc+0x58f/0xc00
  {INITIAL USE} state was registered at:
    lock_acquire+0x185/0x320
    kernel_init_freeable+0x391/0x1150
    kernel_init+0x1f/0x220
    ret_from_fork+0x736/0x8f0
    ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30
  irq event stamp: 56
  hardirqs last  enabled at (55): [<ffffffff850a68d7>] _raw_spin_unlock_irq+0x27/0x70
  hardirqs last disabled at (56): [<ffffffff850858ca>] __schedule+0x2a8a/0x6630
  softirqs last  enabled at (0): [<ffffffff81536711>] copy_process+0x1dc1/0x6a10
  softirqs last disabled at (0): [<0000000000000000>] 0x0

  other info that might help us debug this:
   Possible unsafe locking scenario:

         CPU0
         ----
    lock(&____s->seqcount#3);
    <Interrupt>
      lock(&____s->seqcount#3);

   *** DEADLOCK ***

According to Documentation/locking/seqlock.rst, seqcount_t is not
NMI-safe and seqcount_latch_t should be used when read path can interrupt
the write-side critical section. In this case, do not access
current->mems_allowed_seq and avoid retry.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-43285?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2026-43285?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-43285 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-43285 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-2026-43285 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-43285 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 8 May 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-2026-43285 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-2026-43285/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-43285/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-43285
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-43285
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-43285

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-43285/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.