In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
dm: fix unconditional IO throttle caused by REQ_PREFLUSH
When a bio with REQ_PREFLUSH is submitted to dm, __send_empty_flush() generates a flush_bio with REQ_OP_WRITE | REQ_PREFLUSH | REQ_SYNC, which causes the flush_bio to be throttled by wbt_wait().
An example from v5.4, similar problem also exists in upstream:
crash> bt 2091206
PID: 2091206 TASK: ffff2050df92a300 CPU: 109 COMMAND: "kworker/u260:0"
#0 [ffff800084a2f7f0] __switch_to at ffff80004008aeb8
#1 [ffff800084a2f820] __schedule at ffff800040bfa0c4
#2 [ffff800084a2f880] schedule at ffff800040bfa4b4
#3 [ffff800084a2f8a0] io_schedule at ffff800040bfa9c4
#4 [ffff800084a2f8c0] rq_qos_wait at ffff8000405925bc
#5 [ffff800084a2f940] wbt_wait at ffff8000405bb3a0
#6 [ffff800084a2f9a0] __rq_qos_throttle at ffff800040592254
#7 [ffff800084a2f9c0] blk_mq_make_request at ffff80004057cf38
#8 [ffff800084a2fa60] generic_make_request at ffff800040570138
#9 [ffff800084a2fae0] submit_bio at ffff8000405703b4
#10 [ffff800084a2fb50] xlog_write_iclog at ffff800001280834 [xfs]
#11 [ffff800084a2fbb0] xlog_sync at ffff800001280c3c [xfs]
#12 [ffff800084a2fbf0] xlog_state_release_iclog at ffff800001280df4 [xfs]
#13 [ffff800084a2fc10] xlog_write at ffff80000128203c [xfs]
#14 [ffff800084a2fcd0] xlog_cil_push at ffff8000012846dc [xfs]
#15 [ffff800084a2fda0] xlog_cil_push_work at ffff800001284a2c [xfs]
#16 [ffff800084a2fdb0] process_one_work at ffff800040111d08
#17 [ffff800084a2fe00] worker_thread at ffff8000401121cc
#18 [ffff800084a2fe70] kthread at ffff800040118de4
After commit 2def2845cc33 ("xfs: don't allow log IO to be throttled"), the metadata submitted by xlog_write_iclog() should not be throttled. But due to the existence of the dm layer, throttling flush_bio indirectly causes the metadata bio to be throttled.
Fix this by conditionally adding REQ_IDLE to flush_bio.bi_opf, which makes wbt_should_throttle() return false to avoid wbt_wait().
| Software | From | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| linux / linux_kernel | - | 6.1.141 |
| linux / linux_kernel | 6.2 | 6.6.93 |
| linux / linux_kernel | 6.7 | 6.12.31 |
| linux / linux_kernel | 6.13 | 6.14.9 |
| debian / debian_linux | 11.0 | 11.0.x |
A security vulnerability is a weakness in software, hardware, or configuration that can be exploited to compromise confidentiality, integrity, or availability. Many vulnerabilities are tracked as CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures), which provide a standardized identifier so teams can coordinate patching, mitigation, and risk assessment across tools and vendors.
CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) estimates technical severity, but it doesn't automatically equal business risk. Prioritize using context like internet exposure, affected asset criticality, known exploitation (proof-of-concept or in-the-wild), and whether compensating controls exist. A "Medium" CVSS on an exposed, production system can be more urgent than a "Critical" on an isolated, non-production host.
A vulnerability is the underlying weakness. An exploit is the method or code used to take advantage of it. A zero-day is a vulnerability that is unknown to the vendor or has no publicly available fix when attackers begin using it. In practice, risk increases sharply when exploitation becomes reliable or widespread.
Recurring findings usually come from incomplete Asset Discovery, inconsistent patch management, inherited images, and configuration drift. In modern environments, you also need to watch the software supply chain: dependencies, containers, build pipelines, and third-party services can reintroduce the same weakness even after you patch a single host. Unknown or unmanaged assets (often called Shadow IT) are a common reason the same issues resurface.
Use a simple, repeatable triage model: focus first on externally exposed assets, high-value systems (identity, VPN, email, production), vulnerabilities with known exploits, and issues that enable remote code execution or privilege escalation. Then enforce patch SLAs and track progress using consistent metrics so remediation is steady, not reactive.
SynScan combines attack surface monitoring and continuous security auditing to keep your inventory current, flag high-impact vulnerabilities early, and help you turn raw findings into a practical remediation plan.