Bug 2555109 (CVE-2026-98742)

Summary:	CVE-2026-98742 kernel: kernel: Use-after-free via race condition in ALSA sequencer compatibility ioctls
Product:	[Other] Security Response	Reporter:	OSIDB Bzimport <bzimport>
Component:	vulnerability	Assignee:	Product Security DevOps Team <prodsec-dev>
Status:	NEW ---	QA Contact:
Severity:	high	Docs Contact:
Priority:	high
Version:	unspecified	CC:	rhel-process-autobot, watson-tool-maintainers
Target Milestone:	---	Keywords:	Security
Target Release:	---
Hardware:	All
OS:	Linux
Whiteboard:
Fixed In Version:		Doc Type:	---
Doc Text:	A flaw was found in the Linux kernel's ALSA (Advanced Linux Sound Architecture) sequencer subsystem. A local user could exploit a race condition caused by missing locking during compatibility ioctl (input/output control) operations. By sending concurrent port creation requests, an attacker can corrupt internal port tracking and trigger a use-after-free condition when resources are released. This flaw may allow a local attacker to cause a system crash, leading to a denial of service (DoS), or potentially achieve privilege escalation.	Story Points:	---
Clone Of:		Environment:
Last Closed:		Type:	---
Regression:	---	Mount Type:	---
Documentation:	---	CRM:
Verified Versions:		Category:	---
oVirt Team:	---	RHEL 7.3 requirements from Atomic Host:
Cloudforms Team:	---	Target Upstream Version:
Embargoed:

Description OSIDB Bzimport 2026-10-18 15:54:56 UTC

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

ALSA: seq: Serialize compat port-info ioctls

The native sequencer ioctl path serializes handler calls with
client->ioctl_mutex, but the translated port-info compat path invokes the
same handlers through snd_seq_kernel_client_ctl() without taking that
mutex.

This lets concurrent compat CREATE_PORT requests pass the port-count
check before any request reaches the serialized insertion. The computed
integer port index can then exceed the address field range and wrap to an
existing index. Subsequent subscriber teardown can resolve the duplicate
address to the wrong port and access a freed subscriber.

Take ioctl_mutex while dispatching converted port-info requests, matching
the native ioctl path. All translated port-info commands share this
helper, so their accesses to the client port state are serialized as
well.