CVE-2026-98750 tty: fix saved termios reset race
A race condition in the Linux kernel TTY subsystem allows local attackers to trigger a use-after-free, potentially leading to privilege escalation or code execution.
- 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-2026-98750?
CVE-2026-98750 is an use after free vulnerability in Linux, published on 18 Oct 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:
tty: fix saved termios reset race
Resetting saved termios state on device registration is needed where a minor number can be reused for an entirely different device and where the old settings may prevent the port from even being opened (e.g. when CLOCAL is not set).
Not all TTY drivers guarantee that the minor number is no longer in use when registering devices however, something which can lead to a use-after-free when closing a TTY (and saving its termios) races with re-registration.
Add a new TTY_DRIVER_RESET_SAVED_TERMIOS flag to request that any saved termios state is reset on registration and only set it for drivers that make sure that the minor number is no longer in use.
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-98750?
How do I fix CVE-2026-98750?
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-2026-98750 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-98750 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as AZL-109170, BELL-CVE-2026-98750, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98750, GHSA-447r-jv65-jrgx, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-98750.