1. Home
  2. Vulnerabilities
  3. CVE-2026-72103
7.3
HIGH CVSS 3.1
CVE-2026-72103
dm: avoid leaking the caller's thread keyring via the table device file
Overview
Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: dm: avoid leaking the caller's thread keyring via the table device file The refactoring in commit a28d893eb327 ("md: port block device access to file") accidentally causes the caller's thread keyring to be kept alive long beyond the caller's lifetime. As a result, "cryptsetup luksSuspend" silently fails to wipe the LUKS volume key from memory. In detail: "cryptsetup luksOpen" uses its supposedly ephemeral thread keyring to pass the volume key to the kernel. dm-crypt's crypt_set_keyring_key() copies the key material into its own crypt_config structure and then drops its own reference to the key in the keyring with key_put(). With this fix, restoring pre-v6.9 behavior, the copy in the thread keyring is then promptly garbage collected, such that exactly one copy of the volume key remains. This single copy is correctly wiped from memory on "cryptsetup luksSuspend". Without this fix, the thread keyring and the volume key in it remains. This second copy is only freed on "luksClose". "luksSuspend" neither knows about this copy nor has any way to remove it, so the key remains recoverable from RAM after a suspend that is documented to have wiped it. This fix should not introduce new security problems, as the code is anyway gated by CAP_SYS_ADMIN. The device-mapper core, not the calling task, is the legitimate owner of this long-lived file.

Details
INFO

Published Date :

Aug. 15, 2026, 6:21 a.m.

Last Modified :

Aug. 17, 2026, 6:18 a.m.

Remotely Exploit :

No

Source :

416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Impact
Affected Products

The following products are affected by CVE-2026-72103 vulnerability. Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the products that are affected, the information is not represented in the table below.

ID Vendor Product Action
1 Linux linux_kernel
: Total Affected Vendor : 1 | Products : 1
Scoring
CVSS Scores
The Common Vulnerability Scoring System is a standardized framework for assessing the severity of vulnerabilities in software and systems. We collect and displays CVSS scores from various sources for each CVE.
Score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Score Impact Score Source
CVSS 3.1 HIGH 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Solution
Update the Linux kernel to prevent LUKS volume keys from remaining in memory after suspend.
  • Update the Linux kernel to version v6.9 or later.
  • Ensure the patch addresses key material handling.
  • Verify that LUKS keys are cleared after suspend.
References
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-2026-72103.

URL Resource
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8ced1d242c34e342defcccdb00663354f212aae6
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/981ccd97f7153d310dfa92a534525bbaf46752c2
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d3eb8451d529ea452740d1a2bc395a1d20c48133
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f00105be6a593920e9bc7949a069d4a116888851
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration

While CVE identifies specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-72103 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-2026-72103 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).

Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.

The following list is the news that have been mention CVE-2026-72103 vulnerability anywhere in the article.

Results are limited to the first 20 news articles due to potential performance issues.

The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2026-72103 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 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

    Aug. 17, 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:L
    Changed Affected [{'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': 'd3eb8451d529ea452740d1a2bc395a1d20c48133', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': '8ced1d242c34e342defcccdb00663354f212aae6', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': 'f00105be6a593920e9bc7949a069d4a116888851', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': '981ccd97f7153d310dfa92a534525bbaf46752c2', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/md/dm.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '6.9'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '6.9', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.12.101', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.12.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.18.42', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.18.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.1.5', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '7.1.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.2-rc3', 'versionType': 'original_commit_for_fix', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/md/dm.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] [{'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': 'd3eb8451d529ea452740d1a2bc395a1d20c48133', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': '8ced1d242c34e342defcccdb00663354f212aae6', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': 'f00105be6a593920e9bc7949a069d4a116888851', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': '981ccd97f7153d310dfa92a534525bbaf46752c2', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/md/dm.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '6.9'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '6.9', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.12.101', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.12.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.18.42', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.18.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.1.5', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '7.1.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.2', 'versionType': 'original_commit_for_fix', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/md/dm.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}]
  • New CVE Received by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

    Aug. 15, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Affected [{'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': 'd3eb8451d529ea452740d1a2bc395a1d20c48133', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': '8ced1d242c34e342defcccdb00663354f212aae6', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': 'f00105be6a593920e9bc7949a069d4a116888851', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'a28d893eb3270cf62c10dd8777af0d8452cdc072', 'lessThan': '981ccd97f7153d310dfa92a534525bbaf46752c2', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/md/dm.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '6.9'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '6.9', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.12.101', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.12.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.18.42', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.18.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.1.5', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '7.1.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.2-rc3', 'versionType': 'original_commit_for_fix', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/md/dm.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}]
    Added Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: dm: avoid leaking the caller's thread keyring via the table device file The refactoring in commit a28d893eb327 ("md: port block device access to file") accidentally causes the caller's thread keyring to be kept alive long beyond the caller's lifetime. As a result, "cryptsetup luksSuspend" silently fails to wipe the LUKS volume key from memory. In detail: "cryptsetup luksOpen" uses its supposedly ephemeral thread keyring to pass the volume key to the kernel. dm-crypt's crypt_set_keyring_key() copies the key material into its own crypt_config structure and then drops its own reference to the key in the keyring with key_put(). With this fix, restoring pre-v6.9 behavior, the copy in the thread keyring is then promptly garbage collected, such that exactly one copy of the volume key remains. This single copy is correctly wiped from memory on "cryptsetup luksSuspend". Without this fix, the thread keyring and the volume key in it remains. This second copy is only freed on "luksClose". "luksSuspend" neither knows about this copy nor has any way to remove it, so the key remains recoverable from RAM after a suspend that is documented to have wiped it. This fix should not introduce new security problems, as the code is anyway gated by CAP_SYS_ADMIN. The device-mapper core, not the calling task, is the legitimate owner of this long-lived file.
    Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8ced1d242c34e342defcccdb00663354f212aae6
    Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/981ccd97f7153d310dfa92a534525bbaf46752c2
    Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d3eb8451d529ea452740d1a2bc395a1d20c48133
    Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f00105be6a593920e9bc7949a069d4a116888851
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS score history of the vulnerability.
CVSS
Vulnerability Scoring Details
Base CVSS Score: 7.3
Attack Vector
Attack Complexity
Privileges Required
User Interaction
Scope
Confidentiality Impact
Integrity Impact
Availability Impact