# CVE-2026-31555

> Vulnerability · severity: **MEDIUM** (CVSS 5.5).

## Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

futex: Clear stale exiting pointer in futex_lock_pi() retry path

Fuzzying/stressing futexes triggered:

    WARNING: kernel/futex/core.c:825 at wait_for_owner_exiting+0x7a/0x80, CPU#11: futex_lock_pi_s/524

When futex_lock_pi_atomic() sees the owner is exiting, it returns -EBUSY
and stores a refcounted task pointer in 'exiting'.

After wait_for_owner_exiting() consumes that reference, the local pointer
is never reset to nil. Upon a retry, if futex_lock_pi_atomic() returns a
different error, the bogus pointer is passed to wait_for_owner_exiting().

  CPU0			     CPU1		       CPU2
  futex_lock_pi(uaddr)
  // acquires the PI futex
  exit()
    futex_cleanup_begin()
      futex_state = EXITING;
			     futex_lock_pi(uaddr)
			       futex_lock_pi_atomic()
				 attach_to_pi_owner()
				   // observes EXITING
				   *exiting = owner;  // takes ref
				   return -EBUSY
			       wait_for_owner_exiting(-EBUSY, owner)
				 put_task_struct();   // drops ref
			       // exiting still points to owner
			       goto retry;
			       futex_lock_pi_atomic()
				 lock_pi_update_atomic()
				   cmpxchg(uaddr)
					*uaddr ^= WAITERS // whatever
				   // value changed
				 return -EAGAIN;
			       wait_for_owner_exiting(-EAGAIN, exiting) // stale
				 WARN_ON_ONCE(exiting)

Fix this by resetting upon retry, essentially aligning it with requeue_pi.

## Key facts

- **CVE ID:** CVE-2026-31555
- **Published:** 2026-04-24
- **CVSS severity:** MEDIUM
- **CVSS base score:** 5.5
- **CWE codes:** NVD-CWE-noinfo

## Affected products

- `linux:linux_kernel`

## Primary sources

- NIST NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-31555

## Citation

> AI Analytics. CVE-2026-31555. Retrieved 2026-08-10 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/cve/CVE-2026-31555. Derived from NIST NVD. Licensed CC0.

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