# CVE-2026-53373: mm/vma: do not try to unmap a VMA if mmap_prepare() invoked from mmap()

> A kernel bug causes a warning and potential instability when unmapping a detached VMA during mmap operations in stacked drivers.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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:** 19 Jul 2026
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2026-53373, GHSA-vfrx-cq74-4pr7, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-53373

## What is CVE-2026-53373?

CVE-2026-53373 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 19 Jul 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/vma: do not try to unmap a VMA if mmap_prepare() invoked from mmap()

The mmap_prepare hook functionality includes the ability to invoke
mmap_prepare() from the mmap() hook of existing 'stacked' drivers, that is
ones which are capable of calling the mmap hooks of other drivers/file
systems (e.g.  overlayfs, shm).

As part of the mmap_prepare action functionality, we deal with errors by
unmapping the VMA should one arise.  This works in the usual mmap_prepare
case, as we invoke this action at the last moment, when the VMA is
established in the maple tree.

However, the mmap() hook passes a not-fully-established VMA pointer to the
caller (which is the motivation behind the mmap_prepare() work), which is
detached.

So attempting to unmap a VMA in this state will be problematic, with the
most obvious symptom being a warning in vma_mark_detached(), because the
VMA is already detached.

It's also unncessary - the mmap() handler will clean up the VMA on error.

So to fix this issue, this patch propagates whether or not an mmap action
is being completed via the compatibility layer or directly.

If the former, then we do not attempt VMA cleanup, if the latter, then we
do.

This patch also updates the userland VMA tests to reflect the change.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-53373?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2026-53373?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-53373 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-53373 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-2026-53373 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-53373 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 19 Jul 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-2026-53373 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-2026-53373/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53373/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-53373
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-53373
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-53373

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53373/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.