Vulnerability in Linux
CVE-2026-72482
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: gpib: fix double decrement of descriptor_busy in command_ioctl() commit d1857f8296dc ("gpib: fix use-after-free in IO ioctl handlers") introduced a descriptor_busy reference counter to pin struct gpib_descriptor across IO ioctl operations. In command_ioctl(), the error path inside the loop decrements descriptor_busy and breaks, but execution then falls through to the unconditional decrement after the loop, underflowing the counter to -1. This re-enables the use-after-free that the original fix was meant to prevent: a concurrent close_dev_ioctl() sees descriptor_busy == 0 on an actively-used descriptor and frees it. Remove the early decrement from the error path. The post-loop decrement already handles all exit paths, matching the correct pattern used in read_ioctl() and write_ioctl().
Published · last modified .
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 7.8 (High). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
EPSS exploit prediction
EPSS: 0.002 (6.5th percentile), scored .
Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 7th percentile — 6.5% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.
EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.001 · newest: 0.002 · change: +0.000
Affected products
- Linux — versions 6.19.12, 7.2-rc1, 7.0
References
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2026-72482?
- CVE-2026-72482 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux. CVSS score: 7.8/10. Published 2026-08-15.
- How severe is CVE-2026-72482?
- High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 7.8 out of 10.