CVE-2026-80824 usb: usbfs: fix use-after-free of usb_device in usbdev_release()
A use-after-free in the Linux kernel USB subsystem allows local attackers to execute code or escalate privileges via crafted USB operations.
- 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-2026-80824?
CVE-2026-80824 is an use after free vulnerability in Linux, published on 4 Sep 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:
usb: usbfs: fix use-after-free of usb_device in usbdev_release()
usbdev_release() drops its reference to the struct usb_device before draining the list of completed async URBs, but that drain path reads back through the same object: free_async() calls dec_usb_memory_use_count() for any URB whose buffer came from the usbfs mmap() region, and its first statement is bus_to_hcd(ps->dev->bus).
After a disconnect the usbfs reference can be the last one, in which case usb_put_dev() frees the device and the subsequent loop reads offset 80 of freed memory and uses the result as a struct usb_hcd *, which hcd_buffer_free_pages() then dereferences.
This is reachable by an unprivileged process that has read/write access to a /dev/bus/usb node: mmap() the fd, submit one URB with a buffer inside the mapping, wait for the device to be unplugged, then munmap() and close(). It reproduces on every attempt rather than being a race, because a live MAP_SHARED vma holds a reference on the struct file, so usbdev_release() cannot run until the last vma is gone and the freeing branch of dec_usb_memory_use_count() is always taken.
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in dec_usb_memory_use_count+0x3ae/0x410 Read of size 8 at addr ffff8880122ee050 by task poc/769 CPU: 1 UID: 1000 PID: 769 Comm: poc Tainted: G B 6.12.94 #3
Call Trace: dec_usb_memory_use_count+0x3ae/0x410 free_async+0x2aa/0x4f0 usbdev_release+0x375/0x460 __fput+0x3ea/0xb50 __x64_sys_close+0x86/0x100
Allocated by task 11: usb_alloc_dev+0x55/0xd90 hub_event+0x2524/0x43d0
Freed by task 769: kfree+0x121/0x360 device_release+0xd2/0x280 usb_put_dev+0x23/0x30 usbdev_release+0x2d8/0x460
Release the device reference after the drain loop instead. Nothing between the two points requires it to have been dropped.
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-80824?
How do I fix CVE-2026-80824?
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-2026-80824 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-80824 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as AZL-99530, BELL-CVE-2026-80824, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-80824, GHSA-j9hx-p692-x42g, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-80824.