CVE-2026-46087 addresses a memory leak in the Linux kernel's DAMON subsystem where failure in damon_start() during damon_stat_start() does not properly destroy the DAMON context or reset the global pointer. This results in leaked memory allocations that become permanently unreachable on subsequent enable attempts. The vulnerability affects multiple Ubuntu HWE edge kernel versions prior to 7.0.0-27.27 and related builds. The issue is tracked as CWE-401 (memory leak) and has a CVSS 3.1 score of 5.5 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H), indicating local attack vector with low complexity and privileges required, no user interaction, and impact on availability only. The vendor has released official patches as part of Ubuntu kernel updates requiring system reboot and recompilation of third-party kernel modules due to ABI changes.

The vulnerability causes a memory leak in the kernel's DAMON subsystem, which can degrade system availability by exhausting memory resources over time. There is no confidentiality or integrity impact reported. The attack requires local access with low privileges and does not require user interaction. No known exploits are reported in the wild.

An official patch is available from the vendor. Users should update their Linux kernel packages to the fixed versions listed in the Ubuntu security advisory USN-8488-1 and reboot the system to apply the changes. Due to an ABI change, recompilation and reinstallation of all third-party kernel modules may be necessary. No additional mitigations are required beyond applying the official update.