CVE-2026-68206

System instability via unchecked HEVC reference counts

Published Aug 10, 2026 · Updated Aug 10, 2026

Improper HEVC parameter validation in Linux allows local users to destabilize systems by queuing malformed slice controls. The common V4L2 HEVC slice-control path fails to bound active L0/L1 reference counts before driver-specific code consumes them. Reachability requires local access to a stateless HEVC decoder, where invalid counts can cause out-of-bounds reference-list processing and disrupt the system.

CVSS severity7.8
High
EPSS probability0.18%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Improper HEVC parameter validation in Linux allows local users to destabilize systems by queuing malformed slice controls. The common V4L2 HEVC slice-control path fails to bound active L0/L1 reference counts before driver-specific code consumes them. Reachability requires local access to a stateless HEVC decoder, where invalid counts can cause out-of-bounds reference-list processing and disrupt the system.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-68206
Published
Aug 10, 2026
Updated
Aug 10, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
CWE-1284, 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=5.14
  2. Affected versionversion=d395a78db9eabd12633b39e05c80e803543b6590 <3068ab802fc98b121dcb451e1f7f4d338ffc7a19
  3. Affected versionversion=d395a78db9eabd12633b39e05c80e803543b6590 <9a998cc1c348769262d433acb7d238c5fac4b2e0
  4. Affected versionversion=d395a78db9eabd12633b39e05c80e803543b6590 <afbe4bc252d90a6f8fad869b06d5430f615f22f9
  5. Affected versionversion=d395a78db9eabd12633b39e05c80e803543b6590 <b01df98a6669d2b67d8aed816021b327fd905998
  6. Affected versionversion=d395a78db9eabd12633b39e05c80e803543b6590 <dbaf0e0023e2f9332c5164822def7f80b7d2c5ef

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=5.14; version=d395a78db9eabd12633b39e05c80e803543b6590 <3068ab802fc98b121dcb451e1f7f4d338ffc7a19; version=d395a78db9eabd12633b39e05c80e803543b6590 <9a998cc1c348769262d433acb7d238c5fac4b2e0; version=d395a78db9eabd12633b39e05c80e803543b6590 <afbe4bc252d90a6f8fad869b06d5430f615f22f9; version=d395a78db9eabd12633b39e05c80e803543b6590 <b01df98a6669d2b67d8aed816021b327fd905998; version=d395a78db9eabd12633b39e05c80e803543b6590 <dbaf0e0023e2f9332c5164822def7f80b7d2c5ef

Published CVSS scores

5.5Red HatCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
7.8Linux kernel CVE teamCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-1284Improper Validation of Specified Quantity in Input
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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