CVE-2026-68090

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: debugobjects: Plug race against a concurrent OOM disable syzbot reported a puzzling splat: WARNING: kernel/time/hrtimer.c:443 at stub_timer+0xa/0x20 stub_timer() is installed as timer callback function in hrtimer_fixup_assert_init(), which is invoked when debug_object_assert_init() can't find a shadow object. In that case debug objects emits a warning about it before invoking the fixup. Though the provided console log lacks this warning and instead has the following a few seconds before the splat: ODEBUG: Out of memory. ODEBUG disabled So the object was looked up in debug_object_assert_init() and the lookup failed due a concurrent out of memory situation which disabled debug objects and freed the shadow objects: debug_object_assert_init() if (!debug_objects_enabled) return; obj = alloc(); if (!obj) { // Out of memory debug_objects_enabled = false; free_objects(); obj = lookup_or_alloc(); // The lookup failed because the other side // removed the objects, so this returns // an error code as the object in question // is not statically initialized if (!IS_ERR_OR_NULL(obj)) return; if (!obj) { debug_oom(); return; } print(...) if (!debug_objects_enabled) return; fixup(...) The debug object splat is skipped because debug_objects_enabled is false, but the fixup callback is invoked unconditionally, which makes the timer disfunctional. This is only a problem in debug_object_assert_init() and debug_object_activate() as both have to handle statically initialized objects and therefore must handle the error pointer return case gracefully. All other places only handle the found/not found case and the NULL pointer return is a signal for OOM. Otherwise they get a valid shadow object. Plug the hole by checking whether debug objects are still enabled before invoking the print and fixup function in those two places.

Package Linux Kernel
Published 2026-08-10
Last modified 2026-08-17
Patch available
Yes

Affected versions

Linux kernel versions 3.3 and later are affected. Fixed in 5.10.261, 5.15.212, 6.1.178, 6.6.145, 6.12.96, 6.18.39, 7.1.4, 7.2 and their respective stable series.

Affected from
≥ 3.3
Fixed in
✓ 5.10.261 5.10.x ✓ 5.15.212 5.15.x ✓ 6.1.178 6.1.x ✓ 6.6.145 6.6.x ✓ 6.12.96 6.12.x ✓ 6.18.39 6.18.x ✓ 7.1.4 7.1.x ✓ 7.2

Frequently asked questions

  • What is CVE-2026-68090?

    CVE-2026-68090 is a unscored severity Linux kernel vulnerability . It affects Linux kernel versions from 3.3 onward and has been patched in 5.10.261, 5.15.212, 6.1.178 and others. CVE-2026-68090 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

  • Is there a patch available for CVE-2026-68090?

    Yes. CVE-2026-68090 has been patched. Fixed versions include 5.10.261, 5.15.212, 6.1.178 and others. If you are running Linux kernel 3.3 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.

  • Is CVE-2026-68090 actively exploited?

    No. CVE-2026-68090 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.