{
  "affected": [
    {
      "ranges": [
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "fca839c00a12d682cb59b3b620d109a1d850b262"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "8ffececcb88262389b4f91fed0fe4884b68204bc"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "9bb739a5c5a570c28a62afb98e9326e2a49743c1"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "cc190a6a1d20b87e6a9435202fc2a3bd84c79fb3"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "513121e69388604619ea8c0ee07e86a3d1b5b5dc"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "0c6b9b1e295aeff1132ac7aa738148cc65f06485"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "1dccf5dc2f8fe688270b261ca4216e03c6a1e674"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "f97e6d0572d1b39998e053732332bc3cfdd0b9aa"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "db6365ced4d5855e321f772b240c0e473bcfcdd5"
            }
          ],
          "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
          "type": "GIT"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "package": {
        "ecosystem": "Linux",
        "name": "Kernel"
      },
      "ranges": [
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "4.5.0"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "5.10.271"
            }
          ],
          "type": "ECOSYSTEM"
        },
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "5.11.0"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "5.15.222"
            }
          ],
          "type": "ECOSYSTEM"
        },
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "5.16.0"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "6.1.189"
            }
          ],
          "type": "ECOSYSTEM"
        },
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "6.2.0"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "6.6.158"
            }
          ],
          "type": "ECOSYSTEM"
        },
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "6.7.0"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "6.12.112"
            }
          ],
          "type": "ECOSYSTEM"
        },
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "6.13.0"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "6.18.55"
            }
          ],
          "type": "ECOSYSTEM"
        },
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "6.19.0"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "7.2.9"
            }
          ],
          "type": "ECOSYSTEM"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "database_specific": {
    "cna_assigner": "Linux",
    "osv_generated_from": "https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2026/98xxx/CVE-2026-98537.json"
  },
  "details": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nworkqueue: Fix NULL current_pwq deref in flush dependency check\n\ncheck_flush_dependency() uses current_wq_worker() to determine whether\nthe caller is a workqueue worker and then dereferences worker-\u003ecurrent_pwq\nto test whether the current workqueue is WQ_MEM_RECLAIM.\n\ncurrent_wq_worker() only means that %current has PF_WQ_WORKER set. A\nkworker can reach check_flush_dependency() while it is not executing a\nwork item. One such path is worker_thread() acting as the pool manager,\nwhere create_worker() does GFP_KERNEL allocation and the allocation path\ninvokes the OOM notifier. In that state worker-\u003ecurrent_pwq is NULL\nbecause current_pwq is set only by process_one_work() and cleared again\nafter the work function returns.\n\n[  416.760634][  T375] Call trace:\n[  416.760638][  T375]  check_flush_dependency+0x80/0x120 (P)\n[  416.760648][  T375]  __flush_work+0x98/0x224\n[  416.760657][  T375]  flush_work+0x30/0x44\n[  416.760665][  T375]  ...\n[  416.760710][  T375]  blocking_notifier_call_chain+0x58/0xa0\n[  416.760719][  T375]  out_of_memory+0xb4/0x458\n[  416.760730][  T375]  __alloc_pages_may_oom+0x11c/0x1a8\n[  416.760739][  T375]  __alloc_pages_slowpath+0x314/0x46c\n[  416.760746][  T375]  __alloc_frozen_pages_noprof+0x110/0x1a4\n[  416.760753][  T375]  new_slab+0x12c/0x484\n[  416.760759][  T375]  ___slab_alloc+0x7a8/0xc7c\n[  416.760765][  T375]  __slab_alloc+0x74/0xd8\n[  416.760772][  T375]  __kmalloc_cache_node_noprof+0x2ac/0x304\n[  416.760779][  T375]  alloc_worker+0x28/0x60\n[  416.760785][  T375]  create_worker+0x4c/0x20c\n[  416.760790][  T375]  worker_thread+0xe8/0x2b8\n[  416.760796][  T375]  kthread+0x1a8/0x200\n[  416.760805][  T375]  ret_from_fork+0x10/0x20\n\nGuard the WQ_MEM_RECLAIM-worker warning with worker-\u003ecurrent_pwq. If the\nkworker is not currently executing a work item, there is no current\nworkqueue to diagnose with that warning. The PF_MEMALLOC warning is left\nunchanged so explicit reclaim context flushing a !WQ_MEM_RECLAIM target\nis still reported.",
  "id": "CVE-2026-98537",
  "modified": "2026-10-19T02:30:44.557607872Z",
  "published": "2026-10-18T15:18:05.028Z",
  "references": [
    {
      "type": "PACKAGE",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0c6b9b1e295aeff1132ac7aa738148cc65f06485"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1dccf5dc2f8fe688270b261ca4216e03c6a1e674"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/513121e69388604619ea8c0ee07e86a3d1b5b5dc"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8ffececcb88262389b4f91fed0fe4884b68204bc"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9bb739a5c5a570c28a62afb98e9326e2a49743c1"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/cc190a6a1d20b87e6a9435202fc2a3bd84c79fb3"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/db6365ced4d5855e321f772b240c0e473bcfcdd5"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f97e6d0572d1b39998e053732332bc3cfdd0b9aa"
    },
    {
      "type": "ADVISORY",
      "url": "https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2026/98xxx/CVE-2026-98537.json"
    },
    {
      "type": "ADVISORY",
      "url": "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98537"
    }
  ],
  "schema_version": "1.9.0",
  "summary": "workqueue: Fix NULL current_pwq deref in flush dependency check"
}