Vulnerability in Linux

CVE-2026-89970

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: nvmet-auth: Synchronize timeout work during SQ teardown nvmet_auth_sq_free() cancels auth_expired_work with cancel_delayed_work(). If the work has already started, cancellation does not wait for the callback. Transport teardown can consequently free or reuse the queue containing struct nvmet_sq while nvmet_auth_expired_work() still accesses that SQ. Add a teardown-specific helper that synchronously drains the delayed work before freeing authentication state, and use it from nvmet_sq_destroy(). Keep the non-synchronous helper for in-band authentication state cleanup, where the SQ owner remains alive.

Published · last modified .

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 9.8 (Critical). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.008 (56.7th percentile), scored .

Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 57th percentile — 56.7% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS trend (30 days)EPSS over the last 30 days for CVE-2026-89970: held from 0.008 to 0.008.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.008 · newest: 0.008 · change: -0.000

Affected products

References

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-89970?
CVE-2026-89970 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Linux. CVSS score: 9.8/10. Published 2026-09-16.
How severe is CVE-2026-89970?
Critical severity. CVSS v3 base score is 9.8 out of 10.