Early-boot crash via bootconfig size wraparound
Published Sep 25, 2026 · Updated Sep 25, 2026
Integer overflow in Linux bootconfig parsing allows attackers to crash the kernel during early boot via a crafted initrd. The get_boot_config_from_initrd() function subtracts an unbounded footer size before validating it, so wraparound bypasses the initrd_start check and xbc_calc_checksum() reads unmapped memory. Exploitation requires control of the initrd supplied at boot; the bounded consequence is a fatal kernel page fault.
Summary
What happened
Integer overflow in Linux bootconfig parsing allows attackers to crash the kernel during early boot via a crafted initrd. The get_boot_config_from_initrd() function subtracts an unbounded footer size before validating it, so wraparound bypasses the initrd_start check and xbc_calc_checksum() reads unmapped memory. Exploitation requires control of the initrd supplied at boot; the bounded consequence is a fatal kernel page fault.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-97906
- Published
- Sep 25, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 25, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- T1499
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- Unavailable
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 25, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Sep 25, 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?
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- Affected versionversion=32394df25d8e46935b442b429d74b37885c4f092
- Affected versionversion=5.6.14 <5.7
- Affected versionversion=5.7
- Affected versionversion=de462e5f10718517bacf2f84c8aa2804567ef7df <7812d6dab0698001e50e8c2f901e17da3eb6f429
- Affected versionversion=de462e5f10718517bacf2f84c8aa2804567ef7df <8d4343a411eaa182d323ab5b149496416015f27d
- Affected versionversion=de462e5f10718517bacf2f84c8aa2804567ef7df <bff9a1579e2c9b2a59fdf3793becc9d7bf5ff1a6
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
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Attacks
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Activity data is delayed. The latest report is Sep 28, 2026.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
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Technologies
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