CVE-2026-23205 | smb/client: fix memory leak in smb2_open_file()

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: smb/client: fix memory leak in smb2_open_file() Reproducer: 1. server: directories are exported read-only 2. client: mount -t cifs //${server_ip}/export /mnt 3. client: dd if=/dev/zero of=/mnt/file bs=512 count=1000 oflag=direct 4. client: umount /mnt 5. client: sleep 1 6. client: modprobe -r cifs The error message is as follows: ============================================================================= BUG cifs_small_rq (Not tainted): Objects remaining on __kmem_cache_shutdown() ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Object 0x00000000d47521be @offset=14336 ... WARNING: mm/slub.c:1251 at __kmem_cache_shutdown+0x34e/0x440, CPU#0: modprobe/1577 ... Call Trace: <TASK> kmem_cache_destroy+0x94/0x190 cifs_destroy_request_bufs+0x3e/0x50 [cifs] cleanup_module+0x4e/0x540 [cifs] __se_sys_delete_module+0x278/0x400 __x64_sys_delete_module+0x5f/0x70 x64_sys_call+0x2299/0x2ff0 do_syscall_64+0x89/0x350 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e ... kmem_cache_destroy cifs_small_rq: Slab cache still has objects when called from cifs_destroy_request_bufs+0x3e/0x50 [cifs] WARNING: mm/slab_common.c:532 at kmem_cache_destroy+0x16b/0x190, CPU#0: modprobe/1577

Published: 2026-02-14 Last update: 2026-03-18 Assigner: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2026-23205 is rated Low Risk (23.4/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.02%). Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

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-2026-23205

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 2026-02-15 — 0.02% —

Full EPSS history (1 record total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2026-23205

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
5.5 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 1.8 3.6 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2026-23205

OS Trackers for CVE-2026-23205

vendor priority summary link
debian unimportant CVE-2026-23205 unimportant priority: Debian including 2 source packages (linux, linux-6.1), 6 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 6. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2026-23205
redhat low — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-23205
suse low CVE-2026-23205 severity low: SUSE including 26 source package names (cluster-md-kmp-default, dlm-kmp-default, …), 224 product×package rows across 40 product lines (SUSE Linux Enterprise High Availability Extension 15 SP7, SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP4-LTSS, … (40 product lines)): Known Not Affected 224. https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-23205/
ubuntu medium CVE-2026-23205 medium priority: Ubuntu including 157 source packages (linux, linux-allwinner-5.19, …), 1256 status rows across 8 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, noble, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 871, ignored 169, released 83, not-affected 79, needed 49, pending 5. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2026-23205

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2026-23205

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
linux linux_kernel >= 6.1.141, < 6.1.163 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 6.6.93, < 6.6.124 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 6.12.31, < 6.12.70 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 6.14.9, < 6.18.10 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc7:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc8:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2026-23205

cvelogic Threat Intelligence