CVE-2026-74484
binfmt_misc: don't let an 'F' entry pin its own instance
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: binfmt_misc: don't let an 'F' entry pin its own instance An entry registered with 'F' opens its interpreter at registration time and holds that file until the entry is freed. Any entry nobody removes by hand only gets closed once the binfmt_misc superblock is shut down. If the interpreter lives on a mount that keeps that superblock alive the two pin each other: binfmt_misc sb -> inode -> entry -> interp_file -> vfsmount -> binfmt_misc sb TL;DR the file is never closed. Once the mount namespace is gone there is nothing left to unregister through either. There are two ways to trigger this bug: - Point the interpreter at the instance itself. Its files are regular files owned by the mounter and both bm_get_inode() and simple_fill_super() leave i_op at empty_iops. So notify_change() falls back to simple_setattr() and chmod +x works. We never set SB_I_NOEXEC and so open_exec() accepts it. - Use the instance as an overlayfs lower layer. The overlay superblock holds a clone_private_mount() of every layer until it is destroyed and that clone is in no namespace. So umount_tree() never reaches it. That's a DoS. And it isn't only the superblock that leaks. It pins the user namespace it was mounted in, so every iteration permanently eats one of the caller's user namespace charges. So let's just do the sane thing. SB_I_NOEXEC makes open_exec() fail on the instance's own files and s_stack_depth makes overlayfs reject the layer before it ever takes a clone. That also covers the ecryptfs and fuse passthrough variants. What 'F' promises is unchanged. The stable tag is narrower than the Fixes tags on purpose. Before sandboxed mounts this needed global root against the single instance everyone shares, and the change doesn't apply to those trees anyway. Note that SB_I_NODEV is implicitly raised for userns mounts but raise it explicitly here as well.
INFO
Published Date :
Aug. 15, 2026, 1:17 p.m.
Last Modified :
Aug. 15, 2026, 1:17 p.m.
Remotely Exploit :
No
Source :
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Affected Products
The following products are affected by CVE-2026-74484
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.
No affected product recoded yet
Solution
- Apply available Linux kernel security updates.
- Ensure kernel configurations prevent execution on instance files.
- Configure overlayfs to reject layers before cloning.
- Explicitly raise SB_I_NODEV for user namespace mounts.
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-2026-74484.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-74484 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-2026-74484
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-2026-74484 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2026-74484 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.
-
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': '948b701a607f123df92ed29084413e5dd8cda2ed', 'lessThan': '1cc2decee06acc939337304e9b3f737fd5d8c4bd', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '948b701a607f123df92ed29084413e5dd8cda2ed', 'lessThan': '4dad8ca637d44d5a6d5c23fa80c9e2e455198c2b', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '948b701a607f123df92ed29084413e5dd8cda2ed', 'lessThan': '098e92fe0f1bde5af99c8cf504f13f01ef139f85', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '948b701a607f123df92ed29084413e5dd8cda2ed', 'lessThan': '79055d82772b9584f259b747fe40ff56a076678d', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['fs/binfmt_misc.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '4.8'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '4.8', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.12.103', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.12.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.18.44', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.18.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.1.8', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '7.1.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.2-rc6', 'versionType': 'original_commit_for_fix', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['fs/binfmt_misc.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] Added Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: binfmt_misc: don't let an 'F' entry pin its own instance An entry registered with 'F' opens its interpreter at registration time and holds that file until the entry is freed. Any entry nobody removes by hand only gets closed once the binfmt_misc superblock is shut down. If the interpreter lives on a mount that keeps that superblock alive the two pin each other: binfmt_misc sb -> inode -> entry -> interp_file -> vfsmount -> binfmt_misc sb TL;DR the file is never closed. Once the mount namespace is gone there is nothing left to unregister through either. There are two ways to trigger this bug: - Point the interpreter at the instance itself. Its files are regular files owned by the mounter and both bm_get_inode() and simple_fill_super() leave i_op at empty_iops. So notify_change() falls back to simple_setattr() and chmod +x works. We never set SB_I_NOEXEC and so open_exec() accepts it. - Use the instance as an overlayfs lower layer. The overlay superblock holds a clone_private_mount() of every layer until it is destroyed and that clone is in no namespace. So umount_tree() never reaches it. That's a DoS. And it isn't only the superblock that leaks. It pins the user namespace it was mounted in, so every iteration permanently eats one of the caller's user namespace charges. So let's just do the sane thing. SB_I_NOEXEC makes open_exec() fail on the instance's own files and s_stack_depth makes overlayfs reject the layer before it ever takes a clone. That also covers the ecryptfs and fuse passthrough variants. What 'F' promises is unchanged. The stable tag is narrower than the Fixes tags on purpose. Before sandboxed mounts this needed global root against the single instance everyone shares, and the change doesn't apply to those trees anyway. Note that SB_I_NODEV is implicitly raised for userns mounts but raise it explicitly here as well. Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/098e92fe0f1bde5af99c8cf504f13f01ef139f85 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1cc2decee06acc939337304e9b3f737fd5d8c4bd Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4dad8ca637d44d5a6d5c23fa80c9e2e455198c2b Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/79055d82772b9584f259b747fe40ff56a076678d