CVE-2026-81018 platform/x86: think-lmi: Free system certificate signatures
A memory leak in the Linux kernel think-lmi driver allows local attackers to exhaust system memory by repeatedly loading and unloading the module.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- An administrator
- Attackable
- Local or same network only
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- Available
What is CVE-2026-81018?
CVE-2026-81018 is a memory corruption vulnerability in Linux, published on 11 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:
platform/x86: think-lmi: Free system certificate signatures
Multi-certificate support also allows the system authentication object to store ->signature and ->save_signature, which leak when the driver is removed. Free the signatures to avoid leaking memory.
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-81018?
How do I fix CVE-2026-81018?
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-2026-81018 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-81018 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as BELL-CVE-2026-81018, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-81018, GHSA-853p-rq52-958c, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-81018.