CVE-2026-98091 btrfs: detach failed sprout device from transaction update list

What is CVE-2026-98091?

CVE-2026-98091 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: detach failed sprout device from transaction update list

When creating the first metadata chunk for a sprout filesystem, create_chunk() adds the new device to the transaction dev_update_list through device->post_commit_list.

If the subsequent system chunk creation fails, btrfs_init_new_device() aborts the transaction and releases the device while post_commit_list is still linked. This triggers a warning in btrfs_free_device() and leaves the transaction list referencing freed memory.

Detach the device while holding chunk_mutex before releasing it.

Weakness: CWE-416

Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-98091?

It affects 1 product.

Products include Linux kernel.

How do I fix CVE-2026-98091?

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-2026-98091 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-98091 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-104841, BELL-CVE-2026-98091, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98091, GHSA-frx7-8j8j-mc25, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-98091.