Vulnerability · CVE-2026-46173
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: exit: prevent preemption of oopsing TASK_DEAD task When an already-exiting task oopses, make_task_d…
Published May 28, 2026 · catalog updated Oct 16, 2026 · linux kernel
Check if you run it
No confirmed exploitation is on record for CVE-2026-46173. EPSS is 0.18%. Act only if a listed version of linux kernel is installed.
Gaps on this record
- No vendor fix or required action is stored. Compare the linked advisory before you change production.
- Severity
- High7.8
- Known exploitation
- Not in CISA/VulnCheck KEV
- EPSS
- 0.18%
- Remediation
- Advisory link
- Affected products
- cpe linux/linux kernel
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: exit: prevent preemption of oopsing TASK_DEAD task When an already-exiting task oopses, make_task_dead() currently calls do_task_dead() with preemption enabled. That is forbidden: do_task_dead() calls __schedule(), which has a comment saying "WARNING: must be called with preemption disabled!". If an oopsing task is preempted in do_task_dead(), between becoming TASK_DEAD and entering the scheduler explicitly, bad things happen: finish_task_switch() assumes that once the scheduler has switched away from a TASK_DEAD task, the task can never run again and its stack is no longer needed; but that assumption apparently doesn't hold if the dead task was preempted (the SM_PREEMPT case). This means that the scheduler ends up repeatedly dropping references on the dead task's stack, which can lead to use-after-free or double-free of the entire task stack; in other words, two tasks can end up running on the same stack, resulting in various kinds of memory corruption. (This does not just affect "recursively oopsing" tasks; it is enough to oops once during task exit, for example in a file_operations::release handler)
Are you affected?
Enter the version you run. The result uses only the ranges stored on this record.
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- cpe linux/linux kernel7.1
How to fix CVE-2026-46173
Recommended remediation
A patch or advisory reference is linked. Open the original publisher for availability by product version.
Official advisories
What to do
Three questions, each answered from this record only. Confirm the vendor advisory before you patch.
Should you patch?
No confirmed exploitation is on record for CVE-2026-46173. EPSS is 0.18%. Act only if a listed version of linux kernel is installed.
Which versions are affected?
Compare what you have installed with linux/linux kernel 7.1. Compare the installed version with the linked vendor advisory before you change production.
What should an analyst verify?
CWE-787: Out-of-bounds Write. EPSS 0.18%. There is no CISA KEV listing. No Exploit-DB or Metasploit reference is linked. Use the source links for the original advisory.
Code
The project this record applies to. Exploit listings stay in References.
Timeline
Detection, updates, and resolution for this record.
May 28, 2026 · NIST NVD
Detected
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: exit: prevent preemption of oopsing TASK_DEAD task When an already-exiting task oopses, make_task_dead() currently calls do_task_dead() with preemption enabled. That is forbidden: do_task_dead() calls __schedule(), which has a comment saying "WARNING: must be called with preemption disabled!". If an oopsing task is preempted in do
Oct 15, 2026 · NIST NVD
Updated
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: exit: prevent preemption of oopsing TASK_DEAD task When an already-exiting task oopses, make_task_dead() currently calls do_task_dead() with preemption enabled. That is forbidden: do_task_dead() calls __schedule(), which has a comment saying "WARNING: must be called with preemption disabled!". If an oopsing task is preempted in do
Oct 16, 2026 · NIST NVD
Updated
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: exit: prevent preemption of oopsing TASK_DEAD task When an already-exiting task oopses, make_task_dead() currently calls do_task_dead() with preemption enabled. That is forbidden: do_task_dead() calls __schedule(), which has a comment saying "WARNING: must be called with preemption disabled!". If an oopsing task is preempted in do
Sources
- CVE.orgVulnerability recordCVE-2026-46173
Official CVE identifier
cve.org - FIRST EPSSExploitation probabilityCVE-2026-46173
30-day exploitation probability 0.2%
first.org - NIST NVDVulnerability recordCVE-2026-46173
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: exit: prevent preemption of oopsing TASK_DEAD task When an already-exiting task oopses, make_task_dead() currently calls do_task_dead() with preemption enabled. That is forbidden: do_task_dead() calls __schedu
nvd.nist.gov
References
Freshness
Last verified in this catalog Oct 18, 2026. Significant claims (KEV, EPSS, CVSS, affected ranges) come from the source rows above — open the original publisher for the authoritative advisory.