VulnerabilityPublished 13 Aug 2026Updated 14 Aug 2026

CVE-2026-68438: Linux kernel · smp: Make CSD lock acquisition atomic for debug mode

Affects Linux kernelSource GCVE Database

Not known to be exploited.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 14:05 UTC

Severity

Medium

Rated by Threat Radar · CVSS not yet scored by NVD

EPSS: 0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 9% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 13 Aug 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

ghsa-26r5-rg9x-853c

What to do

AI-suggested

A fix has been implemented in the Linux kernel that makes the CSD lock acquisition atomic when debug mode is enabled. Users should update to the kernel version containing commit b0473dcd4b1d or later to apply this fix. Since this is a kernel-level fix, upgrading the kernel is the recommended remediation.

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: smp: Make CSD lock acquisition atomic for debug mode Commit b0473dcd4b1d ("smp: Improve smp_call_function_single() CSD-lock diagnostics") changed smp_call_function_single() so that, when CSD lock debugging is enabled, async !wait calls use the destination CPU csd_data. That improves diagnostics, but it also removes the single-writer property that made the old csd_lock() safe: multiple CPUs can now prepare the same destination CPU CSD concurrently. csd_lock() currently waits for CSD_FLAG_LOCK to clear and then sets the bit with a non-atomic read-modify-write. Two senders can both see an unlocked CSD, set the bit, overwrite the callback fields, and enqueue the same llist node. Re-adding a node that is already the queue head can make node->next point to itself, leaving the target CPU stuck walking call_single_queue. Later synchronous work, such as a TLB shootdown, can then remain queued and trigger soft-lockup warnings or panics. Keep the single csd_lock() implementation, but when CSD lock debugging is enabled, acquire CSD_FLAG_LOCK with try_cmpxchg_acquire(). This makes the destination CPU CSD a real atomic lock in the only configuration where it can be shared by multiple remote senders, while preserving the existing non-debug fast path.

Impact

If exploited, this flaw could cause the target CPU to become stuck processing queued calls, potentially resulting in soft-lockup warnings or kernel panics. This affects system stability and reliability but does not directly indicate privilege escalation or arbitrary code execution.

Summary

The vulnerability in the Linux kernel relates to the smp_call_function_single() function's handling of the CSD lock when CSD lock debugging is enabled. Previously, the lock was acquired using a non-atomic read-modify-write operation, allowing multiple CPUs to simultaneously set the lock bit and overwrite callback fields. This could cause the callback queue node to point to itself, leading to the target CPU being stuck in call_single_queue processing. The fix introduced atomic lock acquisition using try_cmpxchg_acquire() in debug mode, preserving the original fast path for non-debug configurations while preventing concurrent lock acquisition issues.

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 12 Aug 2026, 17:21 UTC

Technical details

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