KEVWire

Security intelligence, with context.

Response snapshot Oct 27, 2026, 01:36 UTC

Back to the wire
Permalink
VulnerabilityCVE-2026-99018

Linux kernel: riscv: entry: gate shadow call stack reload on sstatus.SPP, not tp

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: riscv: entry: gate shadow call stack reload on sstatus.SPP, not tp Under CONFIG_SHADOW_CALL_STACK, handle_exception() reloads the kernel shadow call stack pointer (gp) only when the trap came from userspace.

At a glance

Exploited
Not known
Severity
7.8 High (CVSS 3.1)
Chance of exploitation
0.2% in the next 30 days
Sources
1 source

What to do

Check the vendor advisory for affected versions and fixes.

Read NVD CVE-2026-99018 (opens a new tab)

What happened

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

riscv: entry: gate shadow call stack reload on sstatus.SPP, not tp

Under CONFIG_SHADOW_CALL_STACK, handle_exception() reloads the kernel shadow call stack pointer (gp) only when the trap came from userspace. It made that decision with scs_load_current_if_task_changed, which compares the trap-time tp (read back from sscratch into s5) against the current tp:

beq \prev, tp, _skip_scs scs_load_current _skip_scs:

Continue reading

tp is a user-writable register. A user task that sets tp to the linear-map address of its own task_struct (&current) before trapping makes the comparison succeed (can achieve by brute force with KASLR enable under our test), so the kernel skips scs_load_current and keeps running with the gp that userspace left in place.

Under CONFIG_SHADOW_CALL_STACK gp is the shadow call stack pointer and load_global_pointer is a no-op, so the compiler-emitted "sd ra, -8(gp)" / "ld ra, -8(gp)" in every non-leaf function then write to, and return through, an attacker-controlled address -- an unprivileged kernel arbitrary-write and control-flow-hijack primitive. The poisoned gp is saved to task_struct.

scs_sp on return, so the reload is skipped on every subsequent entry as well.

Decide "came from userspace" from the hardware sstatus.SPP bit (already in s1 at this point) instead of from tp, mirroring the check that ret_from_exception already uses a few instructions later. SPP is written by hardware on trap entry and cannot be forged from U-mode. Legitimate behaviour is unchanged: user entries (SPP=0) reload the task shadow call stack, nested kernel entries (SPP=1) skip it.

Scores and how they were measured

CVSS base severity

7.8

Version 3.1As of

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Measurement source (opens a new tab)

How bad it is if exploited. Not a prediction of exploitation or proof you are exposed.

EPSS probability

0.2%

Scored Percentile 6.9%

Model and measurement source (opens a new tab)

A model's estimate of exploitation in the next 30 days, not certainty or your own risk.

Related technology

Sources

  1. Primary source

    NVD CVE-2026-99018 (opens a new tab)

    NVD record: description, CVSS (the CNA score is preferred), affected products, and publication date. Not evidence of exploitation.

    Published Checked

  2. Primary source

    NVD CVE API 2.0 (opens a new tab)

    The NVD API page that supplied this CVE record.

    Published Date not suppliedChecked

  3. Primary source

    FIRST measured EPSS score (opens a new tab)

    Measured EPSS probability and percentile for CVE-2026-99018, scored 2026-10-26. This is a model estimate, not proof of exposure.

    Published Checked

Cite this record

For factual claims, cite the primary sources above; cite KEVWire for its compilation, dates, and classifications.

APA

KEVWire. (2026, October 24). Linux kernel: riscv: entry: gate shadow call stack reload on sstatus.SPP, not tp (CVE-2026-99018). https://kevwire.com/record/CVE-2026-99018

MLA

"Linux kernel: riscv: entry: gate shadow call stack reload on sstatus.SPP, not tp (CVE-2026-99018)." KEVWire, 24 Oct. 2026, kevwire.com/record/CVE-2026-99018.

Chicago

KEVWire. "Linux kernel: riscv: entry: gate shadow call stack reload on sstatus.SPP, not tp (CVE-2026-99018)." Last modified October 24, 2026. https://kevwire.com/record/CVE-2026-99018.

Evidence summary (plain text)

Linux kernel: riscv: entry: gate shadow call stack reload on sstatus.SPP, not tp (Oct 23, 2026).
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

riscv: entry: gate shadow call stack reload on sstatus.SPP, not tp

Under CONFIG_SHADOW_CALL_STACK, handle_exception() reloads the kernel
shadow call stack pointer (gp) only when the trap came from userspace.
It made that decision with scs_load_current_if_task_changed, which
compares the trap-time tp (read back from sscratch into s5) against the
current tp:

	beq	\prev, tp, _skip_scs
	scs_load_current
_skip_scs:

tp is a user-writable register.  A user task that sets tp to the
linear-map address of its own task_struct (&current) before trapping
makes the comparison succeed (can achieve by brute force with KASLR
enable under our test), so the kernel skips scs_load_current and
keeps running with the gp that userspace left in place.  Under
CONFIG_SHADOW_CALL_STACK gp is the shadow call stack pointer and
load_global_pointer is a no-op, so the compiler-emitted
"sd ra, -8(gp)" / "ld ra, -8(gp)" in every non-leaf function then write
to, and return through, an attacker-controlled address -- an
unprivileged kernel arbitrary-write and control-flow-hijack primitive.
The poisoned gp is saved to task_struct.scs_sp on return, so the reload
is skipped on every subsequent entry as well.

Decide "came from userspace" from the hardware sstatus.SPP bit (already
in s1 at this point) instead of from tp, mirroring the check that
ret_from_exception already uses a few instructions later.  SPP is
written by hardware on trap entry and cannot be forged from U-mode.
Legitimate behaviour is unchanged: user entries (SPP=0) reload the task
shadow call stack, nested kernel entries (SPP=1) skip it.
CVSS 7.8 (version 3.1; evidence as of Oct 24, 2026; https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-99018).
EPSS 0.2% for the following 30 days, scored Oct 26, 2026 (https://api.first.org/data/v1/epss?cve=CVE-2026-99018&date=2026-10-26).
Sources:
NVD CVE-2026-99018: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-99018
NVD CVE API 2.0: https://services.nvd.nist.gov/rest/json/cves/2.0?pubStartDate=2026-10-12T13:35:55.142Z&pubEndDate=2026-10-26T13:35:55.142Z&resultsPerPage=500&startIndex=9000
FIRST measured EPSS score: https://api.first.org/data/v1/epss?cve=CVE-2026-99018&date=2026-10-26
Record ID: CVE-2026-99018.
Record origin: Ingested record.
AI evidence: Not assessed.
Known exploitation: Not assessed.
Zero-day status: Not assessed. KEV membership alone does not establish zero-day status.
About this data

This record was ingested from a data source. Retrieved: Oct 26, 2026, 19:40 UTC. Ingestion is not an independent editorial investigation.

NVD status: Received. Publication in the NVD is not evidence of exploitation.

A CISA KEV listing documents known exploitation, not necessarily a zero-day; absence from the catalog does not prove a vulnerability has never been exploited.

Technology tags indicate possible relevance, not verified exposure. Confirm the affected product, version, and configuration against your own inventory; KEVWire does not scan your systems.

A personal reading checklist on this device, not verified remediation.

Record JSON

Your account

Email alerts

Email alerts are not available yet. To follow your stack today, use its RSS feed, which honors your filters, or connect an AI agent through the API.

Suggest an improvement

Ideas, missing sources, corrections, and bugs are all welcome. No account needed. Suggestions are reviewed by a person before anything changes.

Record details

Record detail