Kernel vulnerability in widely deployed Linux SUNRPC/GSS affecting NFS clients; remote RCE/crash potential across many environments warrants broad notification.
CVE-2026-89541
Linux kernel SUNRPC gss_unwrap length bug allows OOB read and potential RCE via malicious NFS reply
Is CVE-2026-89541 being exploited?
Not confirmed. CVE-2026-89541 does not appear in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which records only exploitation that has been observed and reported publicly. That is evidence of absence of a report, not evidence the flaw is unattacked. EPSS currently estimates a 0.52% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
How severe is CVE-2026-89541?
CVE-2026-89541 is rated Critical with a CVSS score of 9.8. Severity describes how bad exploitation would be, not how likely it is: pair it with exploitation evidence before deciding what to patch first.
Is there a patch for CVE-2026-89541?
Yes. A fix has been recorded for CVE-2026-89541. The vendor advisory is the authority on the exact fixed version — apply it from there rather than from a summary.
What does CVE-2026-89541 affect?
CVE-2026-89541 affects Linux kernel (sunrpc/gss), NFS clients using RPCSEC_GSS (krb5p). Confirm the exact affected versions against the vendor advisory before deciding you are exposed.
What should I do about CVE-2026-89541?
Apply vendor/kernel updates immediately; block untrusted NFS servers and restrict RPCSEC_GSS until patched.
Exploitation status reflects CISA's KEV catalog as we last synced it. Check the catalog directly.
Remote code execution or crash on Linux NFS clients: crafted RPCSEC_GSS (krb5p) reply causes out-of-bounds reads and memory corruption.
Immediate action required
- affected>= 2d2da60c63b67174add32f06e8d54c3a0c5cd9cf and < 89a15a50f84d32d4b99db86f957427fcbe20a99a
- affected>= 2d2da60c63b67174add32f06e8d54c3a0c5cd9cf and < ebcbd2523a8524c3d24e111cdbed8e271d910269
- affected>= 2d2da60c63b67174add32f06e8d54c3a0c5cd9cf and < d395c30d570ca6168f0297b191709927d1258273
- affected>= 2d2da60c63b67174add32f06e8d54c3a0c5cd9cf and < 87831b92112c81db251d46756d65daa4f91af6a2
- affected2.6.15
As published in the CVE Program record. A version outside these ranges is not a statement that it is unaffected — vendors sometimes understate a range, and distribution-backported builds carry upstream numbers that do not reflect what was patched into them.