CVE-2026-98314

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ALSA: pcm: set timer->private_data before registering the PCM timer snd_pcm_timer_init() calls snd_device_register() to link the new struct snd_timer into the global timer list while it still carries hw.c_resolution = snd_pcm_timer_resolution (and hw.start/hw.stop), and only afterwards sets timer->private_data = substream. Once the timer is on the list under register_mutex, a concurrent reader can already reach it through the same mutex and invoke these callbacks. /proc/asound/timers does this via c_resolution(), and snd_timer_open()+snd_timer_start() reach start()/stop() the same way. All three dereference timer->private_data, which for this brief window is NULL, giving a NULL-pointer dereference: substream = timer->private_data; return substream->runtime ? ... // substream is NULL Move the private_data/private_free assignment before snd_device_register() so the timer is never visible on the list without its private_data set. On the snd_device_register() failure path, private_free() (snd_pcm_timer_free()) can now run, but it only does substream->timer = NULL, which is already NULL at that point since substream->timer is set to the new timer just once, after a successful registration -- so the failure path stays safe.

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EPSS — Exploit Prediction

0.0018

Probability of exploitation

0.07%

Percentile rank

EPSS estimates the probability that this vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. A higher score means more likely to be exploited.

References

Other References

https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0b349249d572633d7c8cdeb917623d1676a2b7c3 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1e713f9bb2ac583521f06b0eb4e22440b1e3d078 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/27f167e117eca310661fbcbacb352ea08face067 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/555d168bd98daa46daccc68c908201388c834293 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/686c7a6af1eea8d2a919303e4c6bbec3de79dbdc https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8c869d5cf5affb20994bdbb60e7d46d65c91b55f https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d63f5a9f8121fb43c798056d7dd34c58f47185d7 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e1eee8f16628f8b6bcae0a366fd6a2dd65e71edd

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-98314? +

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ALSA: pcm: set timer->private_data before registering the PCM timer snd_pcm_timer_init() calls snd_device_register() to link the new struct snd_timer into the global timer list while it still carries hw.c_resolution = snd_pcm_timer_resolution (and hw.start/hw.stop), and only afterwards sets timer->private_data = substream. Once the timer is on the list under register_mutex, a concurrent reader can already reach it through the same mutex and invoke these callbacks. /proc/asound/timers does this via c_resolution(), and snd_timer_open()+snd_timer_start() reach start()/stop() the same way. All three dereference timer->private_data, which for this brief window is NULL, giving a NULL-pointer dereference: substream = timer->private_data; return substream->runtime ? ... // substream is NULL Move the private_data/private_free assignment before snd_device_register() so the timer is never visible on the list without its private_data set. On the snd_device_register() failure path, private_free() (snd_pcm_timer_free()) can now run, but it only does substream->timer = NULL, which is already NULL at that point since substream->timer is set to the new timer just once, after a successful registration -- so the failure path stays safe.

How do I check if I'm vulnerable to CVE-2026-98314? +

You can use Secably's free Website Scanner to check your website for known vulnerabilities. For infrastructure scanning, use the Port Scanner to identify exposed services that may be affected. Check the vendor advisories linked above for specific patch and version information.