CVE-2026-80974

Kernel memory leak via SM501 device removal

Published Sep 11, 2026 · Updated Sep 11, 2026

Memory leakage in the SM501 MFD driver in Linux allows attackers to consume kernel memory when affected devices are removed. sm501_pci_probe() and sm501_plat_probe() allocate struct sm501_devdata, but their removal functions omit kfree() during teardown. The leak requires teardown of an SM501 PCI or platform device; the upstream report was compile-tested only and documents no demonstrated service interruption.

CVSS severityUnavailable
Unscored
EPSS probability0.20%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Memory leakage in the SM501 MFD driver in Linux allows attackers to consume kernel memory when affected devices are removed. sm501_pci_probe() and sm501_plat_probe() allocate struct sm501_devdata, but their removal functions omit kfree() during teardown. The leak requires teardown of an SM501 PCI or platform device; the upstream report was compile-tested only and documents no demonstrated service interruption.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-80974
Published
Sep 11, 2026
Updated
Sep 11, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
Unavailable
Attack vector
Unavailable
Privileges
Unavailable

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Sep 11, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Sep 11, 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=2.6.21
  2. Affected versionversion=b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e <83feedd9d83c0c5199f98c72df0a6196b4aefb4d
  3. Affected versionversion=b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e <94ca4f040ba489db2d4b66e9d1ee91b4f9a00534
  4. Affected versionversion=b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e <c8be3a076a59ec793fb2e4bdb830a709aaea9cce
  5. Affected versionversion=b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e <fcc6c3b11d73459e0d55b27c98cc56d59fef4d82

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorUnavailable in this record.
Required privilegesUnavailable in this record.

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=2.6.21; version=b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e <83feedd9d83c0c5199f98c72df0a6196b4aefb4d; version=b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e <94ca4f040ba489db2d4b66e9d1ee91b4f9a00534; version=b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e <c8be3a076a59ec793fb2e4bdb830a709aaea9cce; version=b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e <fcc6c3b11d73459e0d55b27c98cc56d59fef4d82

Published CVSS scores

No CVSS assessment is available in this record.

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

Weakness, pattern, technique

No sourced classifications are available.

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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