---
id: CVE-2020-36558
title: >-
  A race condition in the Linux kernel before 5.5.7 involving VT_RESIZEX could
  lead to a NULL pointer dereference and general protection fault.
summary: >-
  A race condition in the Linux kernel before 5.5.7 involving VT_RESIZEX could
  lead to a NULL pointer dereference and general protection fault.
severity: medium
cvss: 5.1
cvssVector: 'CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H'
cwe:
  - CWE-362
  - CWE-476
vendor: linux
product: linux_kernel
affected:
  - linux_kernel < 5.5.7
patched:
  - linux_kernel 5.5.7
published: '2022-07-21'
updated: '2026-10-08'
sourceUpdated: '2026-10-08T22:17:00.350'
source: NVD
sourceUrl: 'https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-36558'
references:
  - url: 'https://cdn.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v5.x/ChangeLog-5.5.7'
    label: cve@mitre.org
  - url: >-
      https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=6cd1ed50efd88261298577cd92a14f2768eddeeb
    label: cve@mitre.org
  - url: 'https://cdn.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v5.x/ChangeLog-5.5.7'
    label: af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
  - url: >-
      https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=6cd1ed50efd88261298577cd92a14f2768eddeeb
    label: af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
tags:
  - nvd
epss: 0.0031
epssPercentile: 0.21824
ingestedAt: '2026-10-08T23:16:47.347Z'
---

## Overview

A race condition in the Linux kernel before 5.5.7 involving VT_RESIZEX could lead to a NULL pointer dereference and general protection fault.

## Affected

- `linux_kernel < 5.5.7`

## Remediation

Upgrade past the affected range:

- `linux_kernel 5.5.7`