Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HCVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.
Summary
CVE-2026-23306 is a high-severity Use After Free (CWE-416) vulnerability in Linux Linux Kernel. Its CVSS base score is 7.8 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Client Execution (T1203); ranked at the 2th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SA-11 (Developer Testing and Evaluation) and SA-8 (Security and Privacy Engineering Principles) — see the control section below for these in your framework.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
CVE-2026-23306 is a use-after-free vulnerability in the Linux kernel's pm8001 SCSI driver, specifically within the pm8001_queue_command() function. The issue stems from a refactor in commit e29c47fe8946 ("scsi: pm8001: Simplify pm8001_task_exec()"), which introduced a double free scenario. When the driver encounters a phy down or device gone state, pm8001_queue_command() updates the task status, calls task_done to free the underlying SAS task, and returns -ENODEV to the caller. This causes libsas sas_ata_qc_issue() to assume the task was not handled and free it again.
A local attacker with low privileges (PR:L) can exploit this vulnerability with low attack complexity and no user interaction, as indicated by its CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.8 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H). Exploitation occurs in the described error path during SCSI command queuing, potentially leading to high impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability through memory corruption from the double free.
Mitigation requires applying the relevant stable kernel patches, available at the following git.kernel.org commits: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/227ff4af00abc40b95123cc27ee8079069dcd8d7, https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/38353c26db28efd984f51d426eac2396d299cca7, https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/824a7672e3540962d5c77d4c6666254d7aa6f0b3, https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8b00427317ba7b7ec91252b034009f638d0f311b, and https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c5dc39f8ae055520fd778b7fb0423f11586f15c4. The fix ensures pm8001_queue_command() returns 0 in this path to indicate the task was handled, preventing the double free.
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2026-15246
Vulnerability Data
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: scsi: pm8001: Fix use-after-free in pm8001_queue_command() Commit e29c47fe8946 ("scsi: pm8001: Simplify pm8001_task_exec()") refactors pm8001_queue_command(), however it introduces a potential cause of a double free scenario when it changes the function…
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to return -ENODEV in case of phy down/device gone state. In this path, pm8001_queue_command() updates task status and calls task_done to indicate to upper layer that the task has been handled. However, this also frees the underlying SAS task. A -ENODEV is then returned to the caller. When libsas sas_ata_qc_issue() receives this error value, it assumes the task wasn't handled/queued by LLDD and proceeds to clean up and free the task again, resulting in a double free. Since pm8001_queue_command() handles the SAS task in this case, it should return 0 to the caller indicating that the task has been handled.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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- 3 hardening rules · 3 OS baselines
V1.4.3
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Developer testing and evaluation can discover use-after-free bugs through dynamic analysis or fuzzing.
Engineering principles can require memory-safe constructs or languages that structurally avoid introducing use-after-free.
Process isolation confines the blast radius of use-after-free memory corruption to a single execution domain.
Memory protection controls limit exploitation impact by blocking unauthorized code execution from dangling pointers.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Secure SDLC practices directly incorporate memory-safety tooling and reviews that prevent most use-after-free defects.
Vulnerability identification processes can discover use-after-free issues via scanning or analysis but do not prevent their introduction.
Routine patching removes known use-after-free instances after they have been introduced in released software.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Security testing in development can detect use-after-free bugs before release.
Secure SDLC mandates memory-safety practices that reduce use-after-free defects.
Application security requirements can specify memory-management rules that mitigate use-after-free.
Secure architecture principles include memory-safety design choices that limit use-after-free exposure.
Secure coding standards directly prescribe avoidance of use-after-free patterns.
Change-management processes help ensure memory-safety fixes are deployed consistently.
Hardening callouts derived
Configuration rules from DISA STIG baselines that bear on weaknesses of the type cited by this CVE. Each rule is shown with the relationship its mapping actually records, against the CWE it was authored against. Derived via CVE→CWE over `controls_xwalks` (authoritative rows only; rows rated `none` are excluded).
Oracle Linux 8 (1 rule)
- V-248592 OL 8 must clear memory when it is freed to prevent use-after-free attacks. prevents CWE-416
RHEL 8 (1 rule)
- V-230279 RHEL 8 must clear memory when it is freed to prevent use-after-free attacks. prevents CWE-416
RHEL 9 (1 rule)
- V-257794 RHEL 9 must clear memory when it is freed to prevent use-after-free attacks. prevents CWE-416