Kernel crash via I2C adapter teardown race
Published Sep 17, 2026 · Updated Sep 17, 2026
Linux Kernel 6.18 AMD display I2C teardown has a race that allows local users to crash the kernel via concurrent I2C transfers. DM I2C adapters remain accessible during teardown, allowing amdgpu_dm_i2c_xfer() to dereference a NULL pointer after its backing display-manager state disappears. Triggering requires access to the affected I2C device interface and a transfer concurrent with device removal; the documented consequence is a kernel crash, not data access or privilege escalation.
Summary
What happened
Linux Kernel 6.18 AMD display I2C teardown has a race that allows local users to crash the kernel via concurrent I2C transfers. DM I2C adapters remain accessible during teardown, allowing amdgpu_dm_i2c_xfer() to dereference a NULL pointer after its backing display-manager state disappears. Triggering requires access to the affected I2C device interface and a transfer concurrent with device removal; the documented consequence is a kernel crash, not data access or privilege escalation.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-93068
- Published
- Sep 17, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 17, 2026
- Vendor
- Linux Foundation
- Product
- Linux Kernel
- Classifications
- T1499.004
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 17, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- 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.
- Affected versionversion=5b3eca05cfb02ed0dbd7097c056fb08ce5f76fe3 <6970ec944567f109ac4240f9aea58158ee8a18cd
- Affected versionversion=5b3eca05cfb02ed0dbd7097c056fb08ce5f76fe3 <8ee385305e8902fa6fbfd66b5a112238292567b6
- Affected versionversion=5b3eca05cfb02ed0dbd7097c056fb08ce5f76fe3 <e4ae30a12aa95942814957d8bc1ce7366a7107d7
- Affected versionversion=6.18
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
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