---
id: CVE-2026-98813
title: >-
  kernel: bpf: Hold map BTF for the memory allocator destructor record
  (CVE-2026-98813)
summary: >-
  A flaw was found in the Linux kernel's Berkeley Packet Filter (BPF) subsystem.
  During the teardown of certain BPF hash maps, the memory allocator destructor
  failed to retain a reference to the map's BPF Type Format (BTF) metadata,
  allowing…
severity: medium
cvss: 4.4
cvssVector: 'CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H'
cvssSource: vendor
cwe: CWE-825
vendor: Red Hat
product: Linux
affected:
  - >-
    Linux >= 1df97a7453eec80c1912c2d0360290a3970a7671 <
    b506f5699e145196ee29d76cf1ca1cbb2202c055
  - >-
    Linux >= 1df97a7453eec80c1912c2d0360290a3970a7671 <
    ab39974240a0cff765f3bb9cce81d8001ffdb144
  - Linux 451a84a3ad3c897c03181af433e7c98640730f1f
  - Linux 51a17f0ce19c4ee2a25cf16c93490d509b1ebb0a
  - Linux >= 6.12.112 < 6.13
  - Linux >= 6.18.55 < 6.19
  - Linux 7.0
published: '2026-10-18'
updated: '2026-10-23'
sourceUpdated: '2026-10-23T19:20:39+00:00'
source: CSAF
sourceUrl: 'https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-98813.json'
references:
  - url: >-
      https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-98813.json
  - url: 'https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-98813'
  - url: 'https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2555234'
  - url: 'https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-98813'
  - url: 'https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98813'
  - url: >-
      https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/security/vulns.git/plain/cve/published/2026/CVE-2026-98813.mbox
  - url: 'https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b506f5699e145196ee29d76cf1ca1cbb2202c055'
  - url: 'https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ab39974240a0cff765f3bb9cce81d8001ffdb144'
tags:
  - csaf
  - vex
  - red-hat
  - cve.org
epss: 0.00155
epssPercentile: 0.04619
ingestedAt: '2026-10-18T16:47:32.477Z'
---

## Overview

A flaw was found in the Linux kernel's Berkeley Packet Filter (BPF) subsystem. During the teardown of certain BPF hash maps, the memory allocator destructor failed to retain a reference to the map's BPF Type Format (BTF) metadata, allowing the metadata to be freed while background cleanup tasks were still accessing it. A local user could exploit this vulnerability to trigger a use-after-free condition, resulting in a system crash and Denial of Service (DoS) or potential privilege escalation.

## Vendor advisories

- **Red Hat VEX** · Moderate · updated 2026-10-23 · [vex](https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-98813.json)

**kernel: bpf: Hold map BTF for the memory allocator destructor record** — rated Moderate by Red Hat. Released 2026-10-18, updated 2026-10-23.

Not affected:

- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
- Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4

## Remediation

Refer to the advisory for fix availability.