In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: fs/proc/task_mmu: fix loss of young/dirty bits during pagemap scan make_uffd_wp_pte() was previously doing: pte = ptep_get(ptep); ptep_modify_prot_start(ptep); pte = pte_mkuffd_wp(pte); ptep_modify_prot_commit(ptep, pte); But if another thread accessed or dirtied the pte between the first 2 calls, this could lead to loss of that information. Since ptep_modify_prot_start() gets and clears atomically, the following is the correct pattern and prevents any possible race. Any access after the first call would see an invalid pte and cause a fault: pte = ptep_modify_prot_start(ptep); pte = pte_mkuffd_wp(pte); ptep_modify_prot_commit(ptep, pte);