CVE-2026-72112 io_uring/bpf-ops: reject re-registration of an already-bound ops
A use-after-free in Linux kernel io_uring BPF operations allows local attackers with CAP_BPF and CAP_PERFMON to execute arbitrary code or escalate privileges.
- 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
What is CVE-2026-72112?
CVE-2026-72112 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux, published on 15 Aug 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:
io_uring/bpf-ops: reject re-registration of an already-bound ops
io_install_bpf() only rejects a second registration on the ctx side (ctx->bpf_ops) and sets the per-map back-pointer ops->priv unconditionally. The struct_ops link path never advances a map past BPF_STRUCT_OPS_STATE_READY, so the same io_uring_bpf_ops map can be registered more than once, and bpf_io_reg() re-resolves the target ring via fget(ops->ring_fd) on every call. A caller can therefore point the same ring_fd at a different io_ring_ctx between two BPF_LINK_CREATE calls.
The second registration passes the ctx->bpf_ops check (the new ctx has none) and overwrites ops->priv, orphaning the first ctx. Teardown (io_eject_bpf()/bpf_io_unreg()) only reaches a ctx through ops->priv, so the orphaned ctx is never torn down: its ctx->loop_step keeps pointing into the struct_ops trampoline, which is freed once the map is gone. A later io_uring_enter() on the orphaned ring then calls the dangling ctx->loop_step from io_run_loop() -- a use-after-free of freed executable memory, reachable by a task with CAP_BPF + CAP_PERFMON.
Reject registration when ops->priv is already set, as hid_bpf_reg() does for its struct_ops.
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-72112?
How do I fix CVE-2026-72112?
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-2026-72112 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-72112 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as DEBIAN-CVE-2026-72112, GHSA-wgmw-xwr6-63ww, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-72112.