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NVD / CVE Program· CNA Linux

CVE-2026-68428: KVM: x86/mmu: Fix use-after-free on vendor module reload

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 0/100)

  • The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.16% (FIRST EPSS).
  • Fixed version: Linux Linux 034b7fa1f5846d69eb51f12ce6d1c71871e83c2d, 32b9f89ed9e6d7a45075d64089c254a7f6e13695, 42272b0f239f3a89f9c26a01cc37aee06138b1b7; azl3 kernel 6.6.143.1-1 on Azure Linux 3.0 6.6.150.1-1.
  • Mentioned 1 time in Turkish national cyber security advisories (siberguvenlik.gov.tr).

Low priority for now. Upgrade to Linux Linux 034b7fa1f5846d69eb51f12ce6d1c71871e83c2d, 32b9f89ed9e6d7a45075d64089c254a7f6e13695, 42272b0f239f3a89f9c26a01cc37aee06138b1b7; azl3 kernel 6.6.143.1-1 on Azure Linux 3.0 6.6.150.1-1 or later.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: x86/mmu: Fix use-after-free on vendor module reload mmu_destroy_caches() destroys pte_list_desc_cache and mmu_page_header_cache, but leaves both pointers unchanged. The pointers live in kvm.ko, and therefore survive when a vendor module is unloaded while kvm.ko remains loaded. If creation of pte_list_desc_cache fails during a subsequent vendor module load, its assignment sets pte_list_desc_cache to NULL and the error path calls mmu_destroy_caches(). mmu_page_header_cache still points to the cache destroyed during the preceding vendor module unload. Passing that stale pointer to kmem_cache_destroy() causes a slab use-after-free. Reproduce the issue on a v7.1.3 kernel with CONFIG_KASAN=y, CONFIG_KASAN_GENERIC=y, CONFIG_KVM=m, and CONFIG_KVM_INTEL=m. A one-shot test hook forces pte_list_desc_cache to NULL on the second invocation of kvm_mmu_vendor_module_init(): 1. Load kvm.ko and kvm-intel.ko, creating both caches. 2. Unload only kvm_intel, leaving kvm.ko loaded. 3. Reload kvm_intel and force initialization through the -ENOMEM path. KASAN reports: BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in kvm_mmu_vendor_module_init+0x5b/0x170 [kvm] ... kmem_cache_destroy+0x21/0x1d0 kvm_mmu_vendor_module_init+0x5b/0x170 [kvm] ... Allocated by task 16817: __kmem_cache_create_args+0x12c/0x3b0 __kmem_cache_create.constprop.0+0xb6/0xf0 [kvm] kvm_mmu_vendor_module_init+0x13b/0x170 [kvm] ... Freed by task 16820: kmem_cache_destroy+0x117/0x1d0 kvm_mmu_vendor_module_exit+0x21/0x30 [kvm] Clear both pointers immediately after destroying their caches so that the stored state reflects the caches' lifetime and repeated cleanup is safe. With the fix applied, the same injected vendor module reload fails with -ENOMEM as expected and produces no KASAN report.

—No exploit Fix available
Published
Aug 10, 2026
Updated
Aug 19, 2026
EPSS
0.1% · 5th percentile
CWE
—

Report tools

JSON

Action score

0

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
0 / 40 · —
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.1%

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

—

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (Linux). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • Linux Linux

    • 2.6.25affected
    • cb498ea2ce1d3f3c0bc0a2522241dca10263e437 and later · before 034b7fa1f5846d69eb51f12ce6d1c71871e83c2daffected · git
    • cb498ea2ce1d3f3c0bc0a2522241dca10263e437 and later · before 42272b0f239f3a89f9c26a01cc37aee06138b1b7affected · git
    • cb498ea2ce1d3f3c0bc0a2522241dca10263e437 and later · before 940950d5cd86f250dca578279ad5ca63b4e0986baffected · git
    • cb498ea2ce1d3f3c0bc0a2522241dca10263e437 and later · before 6f4be73880302d5642c83a0813fdfe1f5fd4b6e3affected · git
    • cb498ea2ce1d3f3c0bc0a2522241dca10263e437 and later · before 32b9f89ed9e6d7a45075d64089c254a7f6e13695affected · git
    • cb498ea2ce1d3f3c0bc0a2522241dca10263e437 and later · before ec9daa8fd1b6f45545c9839dca55bd867fad9e13affected · git
    • cb498ea2ce1d3f3c0bc0a2522241dca10263e437 and later · before 43cfb20d62ffe49626d62beecfc32eb6f262191caffected · git
    • cb498ea2ce1d3f3c0bc0a2522241dca10263e437 and later · before 52f2f7c30126037975389aa04d24c506a5177c35affected · git
    • before 2.6.25not affected · semver

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Debian:12linuxbefore 6.1.187-16.1.187-1
Debian:12linux-6.12before 6.12.101-1~deb12u16.12.101-1~deb12u1
Debian:13linuxbefore 6.12.101-16.12.101-1
Debian:14linuxbefore 7.1.6-17.1.6-1

Same product

linux: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2026-74705udp: fix potential use-after-free in tunnel segmentation
    40Plan
  • CVE-2026-74612veth: fix skb length accounting after XDP frag adjustment
    40Plan
  • CVE-2026-74475vxlan: use neigh_ha_snapshot() in route_shortcircuit()
    40Plan

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2026-68423Aug 10, 2026 · mtd: virt_concat: fix use-after-free in mtd_virt_concat_destroy()
    0Monitor
  • ← EarlierCVE-2026-68424Aug 10, 2026 · mtd: virt_concat: fix use-after-free in mtd_virt_concat_destroy_joins()
    0Monitor
  • Later →CVE-2026-68083Aug 10, 2026 · ksmbd: fix path resolution in ksmbd_vfs_kern_path_create
    36Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
Linux Linux034b7fa1f5846d69eb51f12ce6d1c71871e83c2dVendor (CNA)
Linux Linux32b9f89ed9e6d7a45075d64089c254a7f6e13695Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux42272b0f239f3a89f9c26a01cc37aee06138b1b7Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux43cfb20d62ffe49626d62beecfc32eb6f262191cVendor (CNA)
Linux Linux52f2f7c30126037975389aa04d24c506a5177c35Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux6f4be73880302d5642c83a0813fdfe1f5fd4b6e3Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux940950d5cd86f250dca578279ad5ca63b4e0986bVendor (CNA)
Linux Linuxec9daa8fd1b6f45545c9839dca55bd867fad9e13Vendor (CNA)
azl3 kernel 6.6.143.1-1 on Azure Linux 3.06.6.150.1-1 · CBL-Mariner ReleasesMicrosoft (MSRC)
debian:linux6.1.187-1 · Debian:12Package registry (OSV)
debian:linux-6.126.12.101-1~deb12u1 · Debian:12Package registry (OSV)

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

No dated events beyond publication.

EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

National notice (Türkiye Cybersecurity Directorate / USOM)

Official security notices citing this record; remediation advice is on the agency's page.

All national notices →

Technical details

No CVSS vector for this record, so attack conditions can't be derived.

Weakness class (CWE)

—

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.

Change log

  1. Fix✗ → ✓

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References

Show all references (7 more)

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

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