CVE-2026-45921 mtd: parsers: Fix memory leak in mtd_parser_tplink_safeloader_parse()

What is CVE-2026-45921?

CVE-2026-45921 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 27 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:

mtd: parsers: Fix memory leak in mtd_parser_tplink_safeloader_parse()

The function mtd_parser_tplink_safeloader_parse() allocates buf via mtd_parser_tplink_safeloader_read_table(). If the allocation for parts[idx].name fails inside the loop, the code jumps to the err_free label without freeing buf, leading to a memory leak.

Fix this by freeing the temporary buffer buf in the err_free label.

Compile tested only. Issue found using a prototype static analysis tool and code review.

Weakness: CWE-401

Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-45921?

It affects 1 product.

Products include Linux kernel.

How do I fix CVE-2026-45921?

Apply the vendor's patch.

Upgrade, then put limits on request size, rate and nesting depth so one client cannot exhaust the service. More about Denial of service.

Is CVE-2026-45921 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-45921 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 BELL-CVE-2026-45921, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-45921, GHSA-4mx2-9f8m-cpmr, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2026-45921, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-45921.