HIGH · 7.8

CVE-2026-43437

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ALSA: pcm: fix use-after-free on linked stream runtime in snd_pcm_drain() In the drain loop, the local variable 'runtime' is reass...

Vulnerability Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ALSA: pcm: fix use-after-free on linked stream runtime in snd_pcm_drain() In the drain loop, the local variable 'runtime' is reassigned to a linked stream's runtime (runtime = s->runtime at line 2157). After releasing the stream lock at line 2169, the code accesses runtime->no_period_wakeup, runtime->rate, and runtime->buffer_size (lines 2170-2178) — all referencing the linked stream's runtime without any lock or refcount protecting its lifetime. A concurrent close() on the linked stream's fd triggers snd_pcm_release_substream() → snd_pcm_drop() → pcm_release_private() → snd_pcm_unlink() → snd_pcm_detach_substream() → kfree(runtime). No synchronization prevents kfree(runtime) from completing while the drain path dereferences the stale pointer. Fix by caching the needed runtime fields (no_period_wakeup, rate, buffer_size) into local variables while still holding the stream lock, and using the cached values after the lock is released.

CVSS Score

7.8

HIGH

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Attack Vector
LOCAL
Attack Complexity
LOW
Privileges Required
LOW
User Interaction
NONE
Scope
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality
HIGH
Integrity
HIGH
Availability
HIGH

Affected Products

VendorProductVersions
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 3.0, < 5.10.253

Related Weaknesses (CWE)

References

FAQ

What is CVE-2026-43437?

CVE-2026-43437 is a vulnerability with a CVSS score of 7.8 (HIGH). In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ALSA: pcm: fix use-after-free on linked stream runtime in snd_pcm_drain() In the drain loop, the local variable 'runtime' is reass...

How severe is CVE-2026-43437?

CVE-2026-43437 has been rated HIGH with a CVSS base score of 7.8/10. Review the CVSS metrics above for detailed severity breakdown.

Is there a patch for CVE-2026-43437?

Check the references section above for vendor advisories and patch information. Affected products include: Linux Linux Kernel.