In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
ext4: fix task hung in ext4_xattr_delete_inode
Syzbot reported a hung task problem:
==================================================================
INFO: task syz-executor232:5073 blocked for more than 143 seconds.
Not tainted 6.2.0-rc2-syzkaller-00024-g512dee0c00ad #0
"echo 0 > /proc/sys/kernel/hung_task_timeout_secs" disables this message.
task:syz-exec232 state:D stack:21024 pid:5073 ppid:5072 flags:0x00004004
Call Trace:
context_switch kernel/sched/core.c:5244 [inline]
__schedule+0x995/0xe20 kernel/sched/core.c:6555
schedule+0xcb/0x190 kernel/sched/core.c:6631
__wait_on_freeing_inode fs/inode.c:2196 [inline]
find_inode_fast+0x35a/0x4c0 fs/inode.c:950
iget_locked+0xb1/0x830 fs/inode.c:1273
__ext4_iget+0x22e/0x3ed0 fs/ext4/inode.c:4861
ext4_xattr_inode_iget+0x68/0x4e0 fs/ext4/xattr.c:389
ext4_xattr_inode_dec_ref_all+0x1a7/0xe50 fs/ext4/xattr.c:1148
ext4_xattr_delete_inode+0xb04/0xcd0 fs/ext4/xattr.c:2880
ext4_evict_inode+0xd7c/0x10b0 fs/ext4/inode.c:296
evict+0x2a4/0x620 fs/inode.c:664
ext4_orphan_cleanup+0xb60/0x1340 fs/ext4/orphan.c:474
__ext4_fill_super fs/ext4/super.c:5516 [inline]
ext4_fill_super+0x81cd/0x8700 fs/ext4/super.c:5644
get_tree_bdev+0x400/0x620 fs/super.c:1282
vfs_get_tree+0x88/0x270 fs/super.c:1489
do_new_mount+0x289/0xad0 fs/namespace.c:3145
do_mount fs/namespace.c:3488 [inline]
__do_sys_mount fs/namespace.c:3697 [inline]
__se_sys_mount+0x2d3/0x3c0 fs/namespace.c:3674
do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:50 [inline]
do_syscall_64+0x3d/0xb0 arch/x86/entry/common.c:80
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x63/0xcd
RIP: 0033:0x7fa5406fd5ea
RSP: 002b:00007ffc7232f968 EFLAGS: 00000202 ORIG_RAX: 00000000000000a5
RAX: ffffffffffffffda RBX: 0000000000000003 RCX: 00007fa5406fd5ea
RDX: 0000000020000440 RSI: 0000000020000000 RDI: 00007ffc7232f970
RBP: 00007ffc7232f970 R08: 00007ffc7232f9b0 R09: 0000000000000432
R10: 0000000000804a03 R11: 0000000000000202 R12: 0000000000000004
R13: 0000555556a7a2c0 R14: 00007ffc7232f9b0 R15: 0000000000000000
==================================================================
The problem is that the inode contains an xattr entry with ea_inum of 15
when cleaning up an orphan inode <15>. When evict inode <15>, the reference
counting of the corresponding EA inode is decreased. When EA inode <15> is
found by find_inode_fast() in __ext4_iget(), it is found that the EA inode
holds the I_FREEING flag and waits for the EA inode to complete deletion.
As a result, when inode <15> is being deleted, we wait for inode <15> to
complete the deletion, resulting in an infinite loop and triggering Hung
Task. To solve this problem, we only need to check whether the ino of EA
inode and parent is the same before getting EA inode.
What the EG score is made of (scorer v4.0: the three questions the 0–10 score mixes, published apart · methodology)
The EG score (5.5): severity, escalated by confirmed exploitation. This CVE's 5.5 is its impact severity (EG Severity), not escalated.
- EG Severity
- 5.5 MEDIUMCVSS-B, impact only: no KEV listing, EPSS or EG-KEV tier raises it.GitHub Security Advisory CVSS
- EG Likelihood
- 0.2% within 30 daysSource: FIRST EPSS (model v2026.06.15, score date 2026-10-17). FIRST's exploitation probability, not an EchelonGraph model.
- Confirmed exploitation
- None on record (CISA KEV, EG-KEV Tier 1)Reported apart from the likelihood: an observed fact, not a probability.
- EG Priority
- SSVC Track at medium mission impactTrack at low or medium mission impact; Track* at high (mission-essential systems).CISA BOD 26-04: 14 days if the affected system is publicly exposed; Fix on system upgrade if it is not.Each input and its source: the SSVC and BOD 26-04 blocks below.
SSVC (CISA's decision table, applied by EchelonGraph)Track at low or medium mission impact; Track* at high (mission-essential systems).
A fix is available. Apply it within your standard update timelines.
Exploitation none (no CISA value, KEV listing or exploit code on record) · Automatable no (CISA's BOD 26-04 default) · Technical impact total (CISA's BOD 26-04 default). EchelonGraph holds no SSVC assessment of this CVE from CISA: none of these inputs is from Vulnrichment. EchelonGraph applied CISA's decision table to them; CISA publishes SSVC inputs and the table, not a decision for each CVE. Mission impact is CISA's Mission & Well-being decision point, and only you can judge it. CISA's table makes it high when Mission Prevalence is Essential — the vulnerable component "directly provides capabilities that constitute at least one MEF for at least one entity" (MEF: mission essential function) — or when Public Well-Being Impact is Irreversible: "multiple fatalities are likely", the cyber-physical system "is likely lost or destroyed", "extreme or serious externalities" are imposed on other parties, or social systems such as elections or the financial grid "are destabilized and potentially collapse". CISA's decision table
BOD 26-04 (CISA's remediation timeline, Table 1)14 days if the affected system is publicly exposed; Fix on system upgrade if it is not.
In CISA KEV no (CISA's KEV catalog) · Automatable no (CISA's BOD 26-04 default) · Technical impact total (CISA's BOD 26-04 default). Where an input reads “CISA's BOD 26-04 default”, no one has published it for this CVE, and CISA's implementation guidance says: “If “Automatable” and “Technical Impact” information items about a CVE ID are not available and the CVE ID is not in the KEV Catalog, CISA will treat its values as “no” and “total,” respectively, until CISA or a third party provides metadata about the CVE ID. CISA will always provide the Vulnrichment data for a CVE ID listed in the KEV Catalog.” Whether your system is publicly exposed is yours to answer. BOD 26-04 binds US Federal Civilian Executive Branch agencies; for anyone else it is CISA's published timeline, a reference rather than an obligation. The directive · how EchelonGraph applies it