CVE-2026-46333
ptrace: slightly saner 'get_dumpable()' logic
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ptrace: slightly saner 'get_dumpable()' logic The 'dumpability' of a task is fundamentally about the memory image of the task - the concept comes from whether it can core dump or not - and makes no sense when you don't have an associated mm. And almost all users do in fact use it only for the case where the task has a mm pointer. But we have one odd special case: ptrace_may_access() uses 'dumpable' to check various other things entirely independently of the MM (typically explicitly using flags like PTRACE_MODE_READ_FSCREDS). Including for threads that no longer have a VM (and maybe never did, like most kernel threads). It's not what this flag was designed for, but it is what it is. The ptrace code does check that the uid/gid matches, so you do have to be uid-0 to see kernel thread details, but this means that the traditional "drop capabilities" model doesn't make any difference for this all. Make it all make a *bit* more sense by saying that if you don't have a MM pointer, we'll use a cached "last dumpability" flag if the thread ever had a MM (it will be zero for kernel threads since it is never set), and require a proper CAP_SYS_PTRACE capability to override.
INFO
Published Date :
May 15, 2026, 2:16 p.m.
Last Modified :
May 22, 2026, 4:33 p.m.
Remotely Exploit :
No
Source :
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
CVSS Scores
| Score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability Score | Impact Score | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | MEDIUM | 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0 | ||||
| CVSS 3.1 | HIGH | 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 |
Solution
- Update the Linux kernel.
- Ensure CAP_SYS_PTRACE capability for overrides.
- Review task dumpability logic.
- Check ptrace access controls.
Public PoC/Exploit Available at Github
CVE-2026-46333 has a 22 public
PoC/Exploit available at Github.
Go to the Public Exploits tab to see the list.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth
information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to
CVE-2026-46333.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-46333 is
associated with the following CWEs:
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification
(CAPEC)
stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and
approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2026-46333
weaknesses.
We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).
Vagrant VMs with known CVEs for exploit testing
Multi-architecture Linux privilege escalation toolkit with 18 pre-built and runtime-compilable exploits. Auto-detects kernel version, filters patched exploits, tries each until root.
ctf cybersecurity exploit gtfobins kernel-exploit linux penetration-testing privilege-escalation security
Makefile Shell C Go
None
TypeScript Batchfile JavaScript Dockerfile HTML CSS Shell PowerShell Go PLpgSQL
CVE-2026-31431-killed page-cache exploit — code exec into containers sharing the same image layer
Makefile C
An eBPF LSM program to filter user actions on HPC systems
ebpf
Rust C Shell Dockerfile
SSH Penetration Testing Lab — Educational Purpose
Small C utility for temporary hardening against recent pidfd_getfd-based local file-descriptor theft chains. Fix applies to Arch, Debian/Ubuntu platforms
C
None
Python C# TSQL XSLT Yacc CSS JavaScript Shell Makefile Assembly
None
Python Makefile Shell
Research on `pidfd_getfd(2)`-based file descriptor leakage from privileged SUID processes. Demonstrates race-condition FD capture against OpenSSH `ssh-keysign` and exposure of sensitive root-owned file handles.
exploit golang kernel linux cve-2026-46333
Go
CVE-2026-46333
C
Use CVE-2026-46333 and CVE-2026-31431 to change any user's password.
Python
Checks your Linux kernel against known privilege escalation bugs and tells you what to do.
Shell Python
CHARON — pre-built PoC for CVE-2026-46333 (Linux ptrace mm==NULL fd theft)
Makefile C
Linux hardening + real-time monitoring suite by Ash 🜂 & Pasan Senanayake
Shell
Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.
The following list is the news that have been mention
CVE-2026-46333 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
-
security.nl
Nieuw Linux-lek laat lokale aanvaller SSH-keys stelen en code als root uitvoeren
Een nieuwe Linux-kwetsbaarheid maakt het mogelijk voor lokale aanvallers om onder andere SSH-keys te stelen en code als root uit te voeren. Updates en mitigaties zijn beschikbaar en beheerders worden ... Read more
-
CybersecurityNews
P2PInfect Botnet Compromises Kubernetes Clusters Through Exposed Redis Instances
A well-known botnet is now targeting cloud environments in a more calculated way than before. P2PInfect, a Rust-written peer-to-peer malware active since mid-2023, has been observed compromising Kuber ... Read more
-
CybersecurityNews
Nine-year-old Linux Kernel Vulnerability Let Attackers Exfiltrate SSH Private Keys
A newly disclosed Linux kernel vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2026-46333, exposes a serious local privilege escalation flaw that has remained undetected for nearly nine years. Security researchers at t ... Read more
-
The Hacker News
9-Year-Old Linux Kernel Flaw Enables Root Command Execution on Major Distros
Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed details of a vulnerability in the Linux kernel that remained undetected for nine years. The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2026-46333 (CVSS score: 5.5), is a ca ... Read more
-
CybersecurityNews
Linux Kernel Vulnerability “ssh-keysign-pwn” Lets Attackers Read SSH Keys and Shadow Passwords
A newly disclosed Linux kernel vulnerability is raising serious concerns across the security community, as it allows attackers to access highly sensitive data, including SSH private keys and password ... Read more
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2026-46333 vulnerability over time.
Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.
-
CVE Modified by 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
May. 21, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Removed CVSS V3.1 AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N -
CVE Modified by af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
May. 20, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Reference http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/05/20/14 Added Reference http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/05/20/16 -
CVE Modified by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
May. 20, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added CVSS V3.1 AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N -
CVE Modified by af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
May. 19, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Reference https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2026/05/msg00035.html -
CVE Modified by 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
May. 18, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added CVSS V3.1 AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N Added CWE CWE-269 Added Reference https://github.com/0xdeadbeefnetwork/ssh-keysign-pwn/ -
CVE Modified by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
May. 18, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/31e62c2ebbfdc3fe3dbdf5e02c92a9dc67087a3a -
CVE Modified by af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
May. 16, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Reference https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2026/05/msg00032.html -
CVE Modified by af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
May. 15, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Reference http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/05/15/9 -
New CVE Received by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
May. 15, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ptrace: slightly saner 'get_dumpable()' logic The 'dumpability' of a task is fundamentally about the memory image of the task - the concept comes from whether it can core dump or not - and makes no sense when you don't have an associated mm. And almost all users do in fact use it only for the case where the task has a mm pointer. But we have one odd special case: ptrace_may_access() uses 'dumpable' to check various other things entirely independently of the MM (typically explicitly using flags like PTRACE_MODE_READ_FSCREDS). Including for threads that no longer have a VM (and maybe never did, like most kernel threads). It's not what this flag was designed for, but it is what it is. The ptrace code does check that the uid/gid matches, so you do have to be uid-0 to see kernel thread details, but this means that the traditional "drop capabilities" model doesn't make any difference for this all. Make it all make a *bit* more sense by saying that if you don't have a MM pointer, we'll use a cached "last dumpability" flag if the thread ever had a MM (it will be zero for kernel threads since it is never set), and require a proper CAP_SYS_PTRACE capability to override. Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/01363cb3fbd0238ffdeb09f53e9039c9edf8a730 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/15b828a46f305ae9f05a7c16914b3ce273474205 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2a93a4fac7b6051d3be7cd1b015fe7320cd0404d Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4709234fd1b95136ceb789f639b1e7ea5de1b181 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6e5b51e74a40d377bcd3081dd33fbaa0e1aa7e3d Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8f907d345bae8f4b3f004c5abc56bf2dfb851ea7 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/93d4ba49d18e3d7fb41a9927c2d0cca5e9dfefd6