CVE-2026-98038: Software Security Vulnerability Vulnerability

UNKNOWN
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-cwcr-7vrq-384j
Share
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-98038 is a security vulnerability vulnerability (General Security Weakness) affecting Software libraries in the Maven ecosystem. Remediation is available in the latest vendor maintenance releases.

CVE-2026-98038 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-98038
GHSA Identifier GHSA-cwcr-7vrq-384j
Severity N/A
CVSS v3.1 Base Score N/A
CWE Classification General Security Weakness
Affected Product Software
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

How to Fix CVE-2026-98038

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Software dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

mvn dependency:tree

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2026-98038, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Software in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than the patched release), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree command inspects the resolved dependency graph declared in your project's POM files; it does not perform automated security scanning or inspect runtime dynamic classpaths. Always verify runtime container classpaths and shaded JARs.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under General Security Weakness. In Software, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: bpf: Keep refcount_acquire nullable for borrowed RCU kptrs bpf_refcount_acquire() is fallible for a borrowed reference because the object may have reached a zero refcount. The verifier therefore keeps KF_RET_NULL on the return value unless the argument is an owning reference. An RCU-protected load of a local kptr is marked MEM_ALLOC, but it only receives NON_OWN_REF when the pointee contains a graph node. A refcounted object without a graph node consequently looks like an owning reference even though the loaded register has no acquired reference state. If the program drops the last real reference while remaining in the RCU critical section, refcount_inc_not_zero() returns NULL while the verifier treats the result as non-NULL. Only classify the argument as owning when it is backed by a verifier-tracked reference. This retains the non-NULL return for pointers from bpf_obj_new(), bpf_kptr_xchg(), or an earlier successful acquisition, while requiring a NULL check for borrowed RCU kptrs. [ kkd: Rewrote commit log ]

References

NVD — CVE-2026-98038 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98038
git.kernel.org/stable/c/8507449822... WEB
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/85074498228a2500ea8b8039c49cc1ab8ad5328f
git.kernel.org/stable/c/8d19e2cdfb... WEB
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8d19e2cdfba9ba8c8eb6a459cd666bec00a1d2c6
git.kernel.org/stable/c/dc36739e5c... WEB
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/dc36739e5cc9f60485418a910b42bc95339218d2

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-98038?
CVE-2026-98038 is a security vulnerability in Software classified as a security vulnerability vulnerability under General Security Weakness.
Which Software versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to current release patches.
What version fixes CVE-2026-98038?
Upgrading to current release patches (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-98038?
CVE-2026-98038 is classified under General Security Weakness.
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2026-98038?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-cwcr-7vrq-384j",
  "modified" : "2026-10-15T12:30:54Z",
  "published" : "2026-09-25T12:31:33Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-98038" ],
  "details" : "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nbpf: Keep refcount_acquire nullable for borrowed RCU kptrs\n\nbpf_refcount_acquire() is fallible for a borrowed reference because the\nobject may have reached a zero refcount. The verifier therefore keeps\nKF_RET_NULL on the return value unless the argument is an owning reference.\n\nAn RCU-protected load of a local kptr is marked MEM_ALLOC, but it only\nreceives NON_OWN_REF when the pointee contains a graph node. A refcounted\nobject without a graph node consequently looks like an owning reference\neven though the loaded register has no acquired reference state. If the\nprogram drops the last real reference while remaining in the RCU critical\nsection, refcount_inc_not_zero() returns NULL while the verifier treats the\nresult as non-NULL.\n\nOnly classify the argument as owning when it is backed by a verifier-tracked\nreference. This retains the non-NULL return for pointers from bpf_obj_new(),\nbpf_kptr_xchg(), or an earlier successful acquisition, while requiring a\nNULL check for borrowed RCU kptrs.\n\n[ kkd: Rewrote commit log ]",
  "severity" : [ ],
  "affected" : [ ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98038"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/85074498228a2500ea8b8039c49cc1ab8ad5328f"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8d19e2cdfba9ba8c8eb6a459cd666bec00a1d2c6"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/dc36739e5cc9f60485418a910b42bc95339218d2"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ ],
    "severity" : null,
    "github_reviewed" : false,
    "github_reviewed_at" : null,
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-09-25T11:17:32Z"
  }
}