In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
io_uring/rw: fix missing NOWAIT check for O_DIRECT start write
When io_uring starts a write, it'll call kiocb_start_write() to bump the
super block rwsem, preventing any freezes from happening while that
write is in-flight. The freeze side will grab that rwsem for writing,
excluding any new writers from happening and waiting for existing writes
to finish. But io_uring unconditionally uses kiocb_start_write(), which
will block if someone is currently attempting to freeze the mount point.
This causes a deadlock where freeze is waiting for previous writes to
complete, but the previous writes cannot complete, as the task that is
supposed to complete them is blocked waiting on starting a new write.
This results in the following stuck trace showing that dependency with
the write blocked starting a new write:
task:fio state:D stack:0 pid:886 tgid:886 ppid:876
Call trace:
__switch_to+0x1d8/0x348
__schedule+0x8e8/0x2248
schedule+0x110/0x3f0
percpu_rwsem_wait+0x1e8/0x3f8
__percpu_down_read+0xe8/0x500
io_write+0xbb8/0xff8
io_issue_sqe+0x10c/0x1020
io_submit_sqes+0x614/0x2110
__arm64_sys_io_uring_enter+0x524/0x1038
invoke_syscall+0x74/0x268
el0_svc_common.constprop.0+0x160/0x238
do_el0_svc+0x44/0x60
el0_svc+0x44/0xb0
el0t_64_sync_handler+0x118/0x128
el0t_64_sync+0x168/0x170
INFO: task fsfreeze:7364 blocked for more than 15 seconds.
Not tainted 6.12.0-rc5-00063-g76aaf945701c #7963
with the attempting freezer stuck trying to grab the rwsem:
task:fsfreeze state:D stack:0 pid:7364 tgid:7364 ppid:995
Call trace:
__switch_to+0x1d8/0x348
__schedule+0x8e8/0x2248
schedule+0x110/0x3f0
percpu_down_write+0x2b0/0x680
freeze_super+0x248/0x8a8
do_vfs_ioctl+0x149c/0x1b18
__arm64_sys_ioctl+0xd0/0x1a0
invoke_syscall+0x74/0x268
el0_svc_common.constprop.0+0x160/0x238
do_el0_svc+0x44/0x60
el0_svc+0x44/0xb0
el0t_64_sync_handler+0x118/0x128
el0t_64_sync+0x168/0x170
Fix this by having the io_uring side honor IOCB_NOWAIT, and only attempt a
blocking grab of the super block rwsem if it isn't set. For normal issue
where IOCB_NOWAIT would always be set, this returns -EAGAIN which will
have io_uring core issue a blocking attempt of the write. That will in
turn also get completions run, ensuring forward progress.
Since freezing requires CAP_SYS_ADMIN in the first place, this isn't
something that can be triggered by a regular user.
What the EG score is made of (scorer v4.0: the three questions the 0–10 score mixes, published apart · methodology)
The EG score (4.4): severity, escalated by confirmed exploitation. This CVE's 4.4 is its impact severity (EG Severity), not escalated.
- EG Severity
- 4.4 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 2026-10-25). 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 every mission impact level.CISA BOD 26-04: 60 days if the affected system is publicly exposed; Fix on system upgrade if it is not.Each input and its source, and whom BOD 26-04 binds: the SSVC and BOD 26-04 blocks below.
SSVC (CISA's decision table, applied by EchelonGraph)Track at every mission impact level.
A fix is available. Apply it within your standard update timelines.
Exploitation none (CISA Vulnrichment) · Automatable no (CISA Vulnrichment) · Technical impact partial (CISA Vulnrichment). All three are CISA's SSVC values (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)60 days if the affected system is publicly exposed; Fix on system upgrade if it is not.
The score's inputs: In CISA KEV no (CISA's KEV catalog) · Automatable no (CISA Vulnrichment) · Technical impact partial (CISA Vulnrichment). 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