CVE-2026-68205

Local system crash via subdevice owner overwrite

Published Aug 10, 2026 · Updated Aug 10, 2026

Improper reference counting in the Linux V4L2 async sensor path allows local users to crash systems through premature module removal. The v4l2_async_register_subdev_sensor() helper expands a registration macro in v4l2-fwnode.c, replaces sd->owner with NULL when that code is built in, and fails to retain the sensor module. Exploitation requires an embedded camera platform using v4l2-fwnode and local access sufficient to remove a sensor module while a notifier still uses it.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.21%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Improper reference counting in the Linux V4L2 async sensor path allows local users to crash systems through premature module removal. The v4l2_async_register_subdev_sensor() helper expands a registration macro in v4l2-fwnode.c, replaces sd->owner with NULL when that code is built in, and fails to retain the sensor module. Exploitation requires an embedded camera platform using v4l2-fwnode and local access sufficient to remove a sensor module while a notifier still uses it.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-68205
Published
Aug 10, 2026
Updated
Aug 10, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
CWE-911, T1499.004
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Aug 10, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 10, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=4.15
  2. Affected versionversion=aef69d54755d45edefbf347a51efd1673d7daed9 <067887ff93fddbb3a3fb84c900bc654ecfe5ba61
  3. Affected versionversion=aef69d54755d45edefbf347a51efd1673d7daed9 <06cb687a5132fcffe624c0070576ab852ac6b568
  4. Affected versionversion=aef69d54755d45edefbf347a51efd1673d7daed9 <47ef04cd13d38010b580056a9d8840aaab944841
  5. Affected versionversion=aef69d54755d45edefbf347a51efd1673d7daed9 <caea6bc68c925d63ca33d21b2255f47181943d61
  6. Affected versionversion=aef69d54755d45edefbf347a51efd1673d7daed9 <cf9732fd6c4f2f803ccfc46d89489b6635590270

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=4.15; version=aef69d54755d45edefbf347a51efd1673d7daed9 <067887ff93fddbb3a3fb84c900bc654ecfe5ba61; version=aef69d54755d45edefbf347a51efd1673d7daed9 <06cb687a5132fcffe624c0070576ab852ac6b568; version=aef69d54755d45edefbf347a51efd1673d7daed9 <47ef04cd13d38010b580056a9d8840aaab944841; version=aef69d54755d45edefbf347a51efd1673d7daed9 <caea6bc68c925d63ca33d21b2255f47181943d61; version=aef69d54755d45edefbf347a51efd1673d7daed9 <cf9732fd6c4f2f803ccfc46d89489b6635590270

Published CVSS scores

5.5Red HatCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
5.5Oracle LinuxCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
5.2Amazon LinuxCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

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No observations available

Sep 9, 2026Sep 15, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 15, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-911Improper Update of Reference Count
T1499.004Application or System Exploitation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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