CVE-2026-72461 apparmor: fix refcount leak when updating the sk_ctx
A refcount leak in the Linux kernel's AppArmor module can lead to memory exhaustion and denial of service.
- 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-2026-72461?
CVE-2026-72461 is a high-severity memory corruption 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:
apparmor: fix refcount leak when updating the sk_ctx
Currently update_sk_ctx() transfers the plabel reference, unfortunately it is also unconditionally put in the caller. Ideally we would make the caller conditionally put the reference based on whether it was transferred but for now just fix the bug by getting a reference.
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-72461?
How do I fix CVE-2026-72461?
Apply the vendor's patch.
Upgrade to the fixed version. Memory-safe languages, compiler hardening and fuzzing prevent most new cases. More about Memory corruption.
Is CVE-2026-72461 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-72461 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as BELL-CVE-2026-72461, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-72461, GHSA-437g-9c5w-262m, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-72461.