CVE-2025-68809 | ksmbd: vfs: fix race on m_flags in vfs_cache

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ksmbd: vfs: fix race on m_flags in vfs_cache ksmbd maintains delete-on-close and pending-delete state in ksmbd_inode->m_flags. In vfs_cache.c this field is accessed under inconsistent locking: some paths read and modify m_flags under ci->m_lock while others do so without taking the lock at all. Examples: - ksmbd_query_inode_status() and __ksmbd_inode_close() use ci->m_lock when checking or updating m_flags. - ksmbd_inode_pending_delete(), ksmbd_set_inode_pending_delete(), ksmbd_clear_inode_pending_delete() and ksmbd_fd_set_delete_on_close() used to read and modify m_flags without ci->m_lock. This creates a potential data race on m_flags when multiple threads open, close and delete the same file concurrently. In the worst case delete-on-close and pending-delete bits can be lost or observed in an inconsistent state, leading to confusing delete semantics (files that stay on disk after delete-on-close, or files that disappear while still in use). Fix it by: - Making ksmbd_query_inode_status() look at m_flags under ci->m_lock after dropping inode_hash_lock. - Adding ci->m_lock protection to all helpers that read or modify m_flags (ksmbd_inode_pending_delete(), ksmbd_set_inode_pending_delete(), ksmbd_clear_inode_pending_delete(), ksmbd_fd_set_delete_on_close()). - Keeping the existing ci->m_lock protection in __ksmbd_inode_close(), and moving the actual unlink/xattr removal outside the lock. This unifies the locking around m_flags and removes the data race while preserving the existing delete-on-close behaviour.

Published: 2026-01-13 Last update: 2026-06-17 Assigner: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2025-68809 is rated Low Risk (6.6/100): low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.17%). Mandatory action: Low composite risk—no urgent action required; patch on your normal maintenance cycle and revisit priority if CVSS or EPSS increases.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2025-68809

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 0.02% 0.17% +0.15%
2 2026-01-14 0.02%

Full EPSS history (2 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2025-68809

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

No CVSS data in dataset for this CVE.

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2025-68809

OS Trackers for CVE-2025-68809

vendor priority summary link
debian unimportant CVE-2025-68809 unimportant priority: Debian including 1 source packages (linux), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 4, open 1. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2025-68809
redhat medium https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-68809
suse medium CVE-2025-68809 severity moderate: SUSE including 26 source package names (cluster-md-kmp-default, dlm-kmp-default, …), 239 product×package rows across 43 product lines (SUSE Linux Enterprise High Availability Extension 15 SP7, SUSE Linux Enterprise High Availability Extension 16.0, … (43 product lines)): Known Not Affected 239. https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-68809/
ubuntu medium CVE-2025-68809 medium priority: Ubuntu including 157 source packages (linux, linux-allwinner-5.19, …), 1562 status rows across 10 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, noble, plucky, questing, resolute, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 1157, ignored 183, released 119, needed 82, pending 11, not-affected 10. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2025-68809

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2025-68809

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
No affected products in dataset.

References for CVE-2025-68809

cvelogic Threat Intelligence