CVE-2026-53265
Published: June 25, 2026· Updated: Jun 30, 2026
Official Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
dm cache policy smq: check allocation under invalidate lock
commit 2d1f7b65f5de ("dm cache policy smq: fix missing locks in
invalidating cache blocks") added mq->lock around the destructive part of
smq_invalidate_mapping(), but left the e->allocated check outside the
critical section.
That leaves a check-then-act race. Two concurrent invalidators can both
observe e->allocated as true before either of them takes mq->lock. The
first invalidator that acquires the lock removes the entry from the
queues and hash table and then calls free_entry(), which clears
e->allocated and puts the entry back on the free list. The second
invalidator can then acquire mq->lock and continue with the stale result
of the unlocked check.
This can corrupt the SMQ queues or hash table by deleting an entry that
is no longer on those structures. It can also hit the allocation check in
free_entry() when the same entry is freed again.
Move the allocation check under mq->lock so the predicate and the
destructive operations are serialized by the same lock.
Technical Analysis
CVE-2026-53265 requires local access, meaning attackers must already have a foothold on the target system.
Exploitation requires low privileges, which limits the exposure to scenarios where an attacker has already gained initial access.
A successful exploit results in complete confidentiality breach (data exposure), full integrity compromise (data manipulation), availability disruption (denial of service), with a CVSS base score of 7.8.
CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown
Affected Vendors & Products
Exploit & PoC Resources
All References (8)
Quick Facts
Recommended Actions
- →Apply vendor patches immediately
- →Monitor CVE-2026-53265 in threat intel feeds
- →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts