CVE-2026-98090 btrfs: restore active device pointers after failed sprout

What is CVE-2026-98090?

CVE-2026-98090 is a medium-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 25 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:

btrfs: restore active device pointers after failed sprout

btrfs_init_new_device() switches latest_dev and possibly s_bdev from the seed device to the new sprout device before creating the first writable chunks.

If chunk creation or the subsequent sprout setup fails, the error path releases the new device without switching those pointers back. btrfs_show_devname() can then dereference the freed latest_dev and crash.

Restore the active device pointers to the latest seed device before removing and releasing the failed sprout device.

Weakness: CWE-416

Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-98090?

It affects 1 product.

Products include Linux kernel.

How do I fix CVE-2026-98090?

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-2026-98090 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-98090 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

• CVE-2026-53266 Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write Exploited High 8.8
• CVE-2013-6282 Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation Exploited High 8.8
• CVE-2022-0185 Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow Exploited High 8.4
• CVE-2013-2094 Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation Exploited High 8.4
• CVE-2026-53362 Linux Kernel Unspecified Exploited High 7.8

All Linux kernel vulnerabilities

Sources

• CVE record
• NVD
• OSV
• GitHub advisory
• How this page is made

Also known as AZL-104367, BELL-CVE-2026-98090, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98090, GHSA-j9r6-v9mw-fjh8, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-98090.