Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2026-52969

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Developing Published 2026-06-24
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.15.209 / 6.1.175 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
Zero-click 8 weeks old

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: Reject wrapped offset in kvm_reset_dirty_gfn() kvm_reset_dirty_gfn() guards the gfn range with if (!memslot || (offset + __fls(mask)) >= memslot->npages) return; but offset is u64 and the addition is unchecked. The check can be silently bypassed by a u64 wrap. The dirty ring backing those entries is MAP_SHARED at KVM_DIRTY_LOG_PAGE_OFFSET of the vcpu fd, so the VMM can rewrite the slot and offset fields of any entry between when the kernel pushes them and when KVM_RESET_DIRTY_RINGS consumes them. On reset, kvm_dirty_ring_reset() re-reads the values via READ_ONCE() and feeds them straight back into this check; only the flags handshake is treated as the handover, the slot/offset payload is taken on trust. Crafting two entries entry[i].offset = 0xffffffffffffffc1 entry[i+1].offset = 0 makes the coalescing loop in kvm_dirty_ring_reset() compute delta = (s64)(0 - 0xffffffffffffffc1) = 63 which falls in [0, BITS_PER_LONG), so it folds entry[i+1] into the existing mask by setting bit 63. The trailing kvm_reset_dirty_gfn() call then sees offset = 0xffffffffffffffc1 and __fls(mask) = 63; the sum is 0 in u64 and the bounds check passes. That offset propagates into kvm_arch_mmu_enable_log_dirty_pt_masked() unchanged. On the legacy MMU path -- kvm_memslots_have_rmaps() == true, i.e. shadow paging, any VM that has allocated shadow roots, or a write-tracked slot -- it reaches gfn_to_rmap(), which indexes slot->arch.rmap[0][] with a near-U64_MAX gfn. That is an out-of-bounds load of a kvm_rmap_head, followed by a conditional clear of PT_WRITABLE_MASK in whatever the loaded pointer points at. The path is reachable from any process holding /dev/kvm. Range-check offset on its own first, so the addition cannot wrap. memslot->npages is bounded well below U64_MAX, so once offset < npages holds, offset + __fls(mask) (with __fls(mask) < BITS_PER_LONG) stays in range.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · low confidence
Developing — this CVE was published recently and its authoritative NVD entry is still being established, so we're holding a technical summary until the source data settles rather than publish something unreliable. Re-checking after 2026-08-12.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Linux KernelOperating system
Affected:>= 5.11, < 5.15.209>= 5.16, < 6.1.175>= 6.2, < 6.6.141>= 6.7, < 6.12.91>= 6.13, < 6.18.33>= 6.19, < 7.0.10= 7.1

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.15.209 / 6.1.175 / 6.6.141 or later
Fixed in 5.15.2096.1.1756.6.141
Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to Linux kernel >= 5.15.209 (for 5.11-5.15 branch), >= 6.1.175 (for 5.16-6.1 branch), >= 6.6.141 (for 6.2-6.6 branch), or >= 6.12.91 (for 6.7-6.12 branch)

  1. Identify the currently running kernel version using `uname -r`
  2. Determine which version range your current kernel falls into based on the affected versions list
  3. Plan for a system reboot after kernel upgrade
  4. Apply the kernel upgrade through your distribution's package manager (e.g., `apt-get update && apt-get upgrade` for Debian/Ubuntu, `yum update` for RHEL/CentOS, or `dnf upgrade` for Fedora)
  5. Reboot the system to load the new kernel
  6. Verify the new kernel version is running with `uname -r` and confirm it is at or above the fixed version for your branch (5.15.209, 6.1.175, 6.6.141, or 6.12.91)
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require rebuild of out-of-tree modules; ensure compatible drivers/modules are available before upgrading

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

We can perform the upgrade in your staging environment and verify nothing breaks — typical engagement from $1,950. Get the upgrade done

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

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