Findings

CVE-2026-43258

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: alpha: fix user-space corruption during memory compaction Alpha systems can suffer sporadic user-sp…

Published May 6, 2026 · corrected/updated Jun 17, 2026 · linux linux kernel · evidence confidence medium

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: alpha: fix user-space corruption during memory compaction Alpha systems can suffer sporadic user-space crashes and heap corruption when memory compaction is enabled. Symptoms include SIGSEGV, glibc allocator failures (e.g. "unaligned tcache chunk"), and compiler internal errors. The failures disappear when compaction is disabled or when using global TLB invalidation. The root cause is insufficient TLB shootdown during page migration. Alpha relies on ASN-based MM context rollover for instruction cache coherency, but this alone is not sufficient to prevent stale data or instruction translations from surviving migration. Fix this by introducing a migration-specific helper that combines: - MM context invalidation (ASN rollover), - immediate per-CPU TLB invalidation (TBI), - synchronous cross-CPU shootdown when required. The helper is used only by migration/compaction paths to avoid changing global TLB semantics. Additionally, update flush_tlb_other(), pte_clear(), to use READ_ONCE()/WRITE_ONCE() for correct SMP memory ordering. This fixes observed crashes on both UP and SMP Alpha systems.

Grounded briefings

Catalog interpretations for three audiences. Each brief cites ingested metadata and the original advisories below. They are not independent research and they do not invent exploit steps.

Executive

CVE-2026-43258 is a high public vulnerability record for linux linux kernel. It is not currently listed in the CISA Known Exploited catalog. Check the linked vendor or CERT advisories for patch status. This summary is a catalog interpretation of the ingested metadata and cites the original advisories below.

System administrator

Identify whether linux linux kernel is in your estate, then compare installed versions with the affected ranges. Affected packages or ranges on record: linux/linux kernel; linux/linux kernel (2.6.16). Check the linked vendor or CERT advisories for patch status. Prefer the vendor or distribution advisory linked in Sources before changing production systems. This is a catalog interpretation, not a runbook.

Security analyst

Signals on file: CVSS 7.8. It is not currently listed in the CISA Known Exploited catalog. Weakness classes: CWE-787. Sources contributing to this record: cve_org, nvd. Public exploit references, when present, are outbound links only and are not proof of active exploitation. This is a catalog interpretation of stored metadata.

Exploitation and remediation

  • Exploitation evidence

    Not listed as known exploited in CISA KEV. Not in the CISA KEV catalog.

  • Patch and remediation

    No required-action text is stored yet. Use the vendor or CERT links in Sources for patch availability.

  • Safe detection guidance

    Compare installed versions with the affected ranges below and verify the advisory from the original publisher. This site stores metadata and outbound links only; it does not ship exploit code or proof-of-concept payloads.

Code

The project this record applies to. Exploit listings stay in References.

Timeline

Detection, updates, and resolution for this record.

  1. May 6, 2026 · NIST NVD

    Detected

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: alpha: fix user-space corruption during memory compaction Alpha systems can suffer sporadic user-space crashes and heap corruption when memory compaction is enabled. Symptoms include SIGSEGV, glibc allocator failures (e.g. "unaligned tcache chunk"), and compiler internal errors. The failures disappear when compaction is disabled o

  2. Jun 17, 2026 · NIST NVD

    Updated

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: alpha: fix user-space corruption during memory compaction Alpha systems can suffer sporadic user-space crashes and heap corruption when memory compaction is enabled. Symptoms include SIGSEGV, glibc allocator failures (e.g. "unaligned tcache chunk"), and compiler internal errors. The failures disappear when compaction is disabled o

Affected

  • cpe linux/linux kernelversion unspecified
  • cpe linux/linux kernel2.6.16

Sources

  • CVE.orgVulnerability recordCVE-2026-43258

    Official CVE identifier

    cve.org
  • NIST NVDVulnerability recordCVE-2026-43258

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: alpha: fix user-space corruption during memory compaction Alpha systems can suffer sporadic user-space crashes and heap corruption when memory compaction is enabled. Symptoms include SIGSEGV, glibc allocator f

    nvd.nist.gov

References