CVE-2026-97526

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: s390/pai: Support CPU hotplug for PMU PAI The command 'perf stat -e pai_crypto/CRYPTO_ALL/ -- <command>' crashes the kernel when CPUs are hotplug added during that run. Root cause is the missing allocation of per-CPU data structures for that new CPU. The allocation is dynamic and the first event that has task context creates such a structure for each online CPU. This is not sufficient. CPUs may be offline during event creation and can be set online during the perf run time. For example commands # echo 0 > /sys/devices/system/cpu/cpu1/online # perf stat -e cycles -i -- stress-ng -t10s --matrix X # sleep 1 # echo 1 > /sys/devices/system/cpu/cpu1/online Currently without a CPU hotplug handler, that new CPU has no per-CPU data infrastructure. The scheduler runs PMU call back function pai_add() to install the PMU support for that CPU before the task is being scheduled on that new CPU. In pai_add() instructions mp = this_cpu_ptr(pai_root[idx].mapptr); cpump = mp->mapptr; return a NULL pointer and the result is a kernel panic as variable cpump is used inside that function. Add CPU hotplug support for CPU add and delete and create the necessary per-CPU data infrastructure during CPU hotplug add processing. Same for CPU hotplug remove. This is done when the CPU is offline to ensure the data structures are available when CPU is made online and tasks are scheduled on it. [[email protected]: fixup error path in pai_init()]

Package Linux Kernel
Published 2026-09-25
Last modified 2026-09-25
Patch available
Yes

Affected versions

Linux kernel versions 6.11 and later are affected. Fixed in 7.2.7, 7.3-rc3 and their respective stable series.

Affected from
≥ 6.11
Fixed in
✓ 7.2.7 7.2.x ✓ 7.3-rc3

Frequently asked questions

  • What is CVE-2026-97526?

    CVE-2026-97526 is a unscored severity Linux kernel vulnerability . It affects Linux kernel versions from 6.11 onward and has been patched in 7.2.7 and 7.3-rc3. CVE-2026-97526 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

  • Is there a patch available for CVE-2026-97526?

    Yes. CVE-2026-97526 has been patched. Fixed versions include 7.2.7 and 7.3-rc3. If you are running Linux kernel 6.11 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.

  • Is CVE-2026-97526 actively exploited?

    No. CVE-2026-97526 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.