CVE-2026-90117: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ntfs: validate usa_ofs before preserving the update sequence number When ntfs_mft_record

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ntfs: validate usa_ofs before preserving the update sequence number When ntfs_mft_record_a

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ntfs: validate usa_ofs before preserving the update sequence number When ntfs_mft_record_alloc() reuses a free mft record it reads the old update sequence number straight from the on-disk record: usn = *(__le16 *)((u8 *)m + le16_to_cpu(m->usa_ofs)); Here m points into the raw $MFT page-cache folio, which still holds unvalidated, MST-protected bytes: the folio is read by a plain iomap_read_folio() and neither post_read_mst_fixup() nor ntfs_mft_record_check() has run on it (both work on private copies). m->usa_ofs is therefore an untrusted u16, and a corrupted record can put it past the end of the record so the two-byte read lands outside the folio. Reading such a record while creating a file gives, under KASAN: BUG: KASAN: use-after-free in ntfs_mft_record_alloc+... Read of size 2 at addr ... ntfs_mft_record_alloc -> __ntfs_create -> ntfs_create -> path_openat Only preserve the old update sequence number when usa_ofs is even and in range, mirroring the check ntfs_mft_record_check() already applies; otherwise leave usn zero, which the existing restore below skips.

Description from the National Vulnerability Database, published by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

What it means for a small business

Linux is on the computers, phones or browsers your team uses every day. Turn on automatic updates and restart: most of these fixes only take effect after a restart.

How likely is an attack? The Exploit Prediction Scoring System, run by FIRST (the global association of security response teams), puts the odds of this one being exploited in the next 30 days at 0.20%, higher than 9% of CVEs. That’s low, but low isn’t zero, and the odds jump the day someone publishes an exploit. Scored October 28, 2026, updated daily.

Check your own setup

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Server check: what your web server says about itself, and whether that version has known flaws.

Sources

Part of the Huttenlocher Technologies vulnerability database, refreshed twice a day from CISA and the NVD. The title, category and plain-language guidance are ours; check the linked record before acting on a detail. This is general guidance, not a review of your systems.

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