CVE-2026-89741

High

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: Revert "media: v4l2-dev: fix error handling in __video_register_device()" This reverts commit 2a934fdb01db6458288fc9386d3d8ceba6dd551a. The intentions of that patch were good, but it doesn't work. The idea is that if device_register fails, you have to do a put_device to let the ref counter release resources. However, the V4L2 API says that if video_register_device() fails, then you have to call video_device_release(), which kfree()s the video_device struct. But the put_device() will already have freed the struct, so you end up in a double-free scenario. There is not really a good way of fixing this without breaking video_register_device() into two parts, one that initializes everything, and one that does the actual device_register, and then converting all V4L2 drivers to this new model. That is a massive job, and it is very unlikely that device_register will fail. So rather than ending up in a double-free scenario, just revert this patch, and in that case we'll have a small memory leak. Which is a lot more robust.

Package Linux Kernel
Published 2026-09-11
Last modified 2026-09-14
CVSS version 3.1
Patch available
Yes

CVSS 3.1 score

7.8

out of 10
High
Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High
Vector string
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected versions

Linux kernel versions 5.10.239, 5.15.186, 6.1.142, 6.6.95, 6.12.35, 5.4.295, 6.15.4, 6.16 and later are affected. Fixed in 5.10.270, 5.15.221, 6.1.188, 6.6.157, 6.12.109, 6.18.50, 7.2.4, 7.3-rc1 and their respective stable series.

Affected from
≥ 5.10.239 ≥ 5.15.186 ≥ 6.1.142 ≥ 6.6.95 ≥ 6.12.35 ≥ 5.4.295 ≥ 6.15.4 ≥ 6.16
Fixed in
✓ 5.10.270 5.10.x ✓ 5.15.221 5.15.x ✓ 6.1.188 6.1.x ✓ 6.6.157 6.6.x ✓ 6.12.109 6.12.x ✓ 6.18.50 6.18.x ✓ 7.2.4 7.2.x ✓ 7.3-rc1

References

8 total
Showing 5 of 8 references View all on NVD

Frequently asked questions

  • What is CVE-2026-89741?

    CVE-2026-89741 is a High severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 7.8 out of 10 . It affects Linux kernel versions from 5.10.239 onward and has been patched in 5.10.270, 5.15.221, 6.1.188 and others. CVE-2026-89741 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

  • What is the CVSS score for CVE-2026-89741?

    CVE-2026-89741 has a CVSS score of 7.8 out of 10, rated High severity (CVSS 3.1). The vector string is CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H .

  • Is there a patch available for CVE-2026-89741?

    Yes. CVE-2026-89741 has been patched. Fixed versions include 5.10.270, 5.15.221, 6.1.188 and others. If you are running Linux kernel 5.10.239 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.

  • Is CVE-2026-89741 actively exploited?

    No. CVE-2026-89741 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.

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