CVE-2026-90214

Invalid memory access via failed PCM-open cleanup

Published Sep 17, 2026 · Updated Sep 17, 2026

Use-after-free in the Xilinx PCM driver in Linux Kernel 5.1 allows local users to trigger invalid kernel memory access. In xlnx_formatter_pcm_open(), constraint-check failures leave stream_data allocated and a stream pointer referencing an ALSA-freed substream, which a later interrupt passes to snd_pcm_period_elapsed(). Reaching the fault requires access to the affected audio device, a failed PCM open, and a subsequent interrupt; the upstream description does not establish a crash or privilege-escalation outcome.

CVSS severity5.3
Medium
EPSS probability0.22%
Next 30 days · Oct 19, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Get started

Summary

What happened

Use-after-free in the Xilinx PCM driver in Linux Kernel 5.1 allows local users to trigger invalid kernel memory access. In xlnx_formatter_pcm_open(), constraint-check failures leave stream_data allocated and a stream pointer referencing an ALSA-freed substream, which a later interrupt passes to snd_pcm_period_elapsed(). Reaching the fault requires access to the affected audio device, a failed PCM open, and a subsequent interrupt; the upstream description does not establish a crash or privilege-escalation outcome.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-90214
Published
Sep 17, 2026
Updated
Sep 17, 2026
Vendor
Linux Foundation
Product
Linux Kernel
Classifications
Unavailable
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Sep 17, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Sep 17, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

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

  1. Affected versionversion=5.1
  2. Affected versionversion=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <3fd89a51b8cfe788df67f54b716b305dd45b8468
  3. Affected versionversion=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <4e0ce77df7d9808926719d7950a07fbad14ea9ef
  4. Affected versionversion=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <5e1a2d9fff57f3a2b1a0f54d128d64245a253004
  5. Affected versionversion=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <8b30628dfc2b2fad3b55a9441776a226035045fa
  6. Affected versionversion=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <8c38ae4a465691947977c25d10394da22a64a19f
  7. Affected versionversion=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <9030aa4e14b704dc39ee208207cb65064020d857
  8. Affected versionversion=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <b992511180e126150c6ad3580a6fd568c385f4c6
  9. Affected versionversion=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <edf81b293cba1b00a5e71becf184414f6991a6ca

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Linux Foundation · Linux Kernelversion=5.1; version=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <3fd89a51b8cfe788df67f54b716b305dd45b8468; version=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <4e0ce77df7d9808926719d7950a07fbad14ea9ef; version=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <5e1a2d9fff57f3a2b1a0f54d128d64245a253004; version=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <8b30628dfc2b2fad3b55a9441776a226035045fa; version=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <8c38ae4a465691947977c25d10394da22a64a19f; version=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <9030aa4e14b704dc39ee208207cb65064020d857; version=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <b992511180e126150c6ad3580a6fd568c385f4c6; version=6f6c3c36f0917be24587eeba818ab4fdfcb5465a <edf81b293cba1b00a5e71becf184414f6991a6ca

Published CVSS scores

5.3SUSECVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:H
5.3Amazon LinuxCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/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.

Activity data is delayed. The latest report is Sep 28, 2026.

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

No observations available

Sep 22, 2026Sep 28, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 28, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
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

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Get started to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Get started