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VulnerabilityPublished Updated

CVE-2026-72281: Linux kernel · KVM: arm64: account pKVM reclaim against the VM mm

Affects Linux kernelSource GCVE Database

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Not known to be exploited · CVSS 4.6 Medium.

Data as of 9 Nov 2026, 14:04 UTC

CVSS 4.0 base score
4.6Medium
How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.
CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:N/VI:L/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Exploitation evidence

  1. Disclosed: evidence found.

    CVE published 15 Aug 2026

  2. Detectable: no evidence on record.

    No public nuclei template indexed

  3. Weaponized: no evidence on record.

    No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB

  4. Exploited in the wild: no evidence on record.

    Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation

  5. Observed by OffSeq 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 9 Nov 2026.

What to do

Affected software

ProductAffectedFixed in
Ubuntu 24.04 LTSlinux-aws-6.14pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-aws-6.14?arch=source&distro=nobleOther threatsAffected
  • 6.14.0-1007.7~24.04.1 – 6.14.0-1018.18~24.04.1
11 affected builds
Fixed in–
Ubuntu 24.04 LTSlinux-aws-6.17pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-aws-6.17?arch=source&distro=nobleOther threatsAffected
  • 6.17.0-1005.5~24.04.2 – 6.17.0-1020.20~24.04.1
10 affected builds
Fixed in–
Ubuntu 24.04 LTSlinux-azure-6.11pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure-6.11?arch=source&distro=nobleOther threatsAffected
  • 6.11.0-1008.8~24.04.1 – 6.11.0-1018.18~24.04.1
7 affected builds
Fixed in–
Ubuntu 24.04 LTSlinux-azure-6.14pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure-6.14?arch=source&distro=nobleOther threatsAffected
  • 6.14.0-1010.10~24.04.1 – 6.14.0-1017.17~24.04.1
5 affected builds
Fixed in–
Ubuntu 24.04 LTSlinux-azure-6.17pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure-6.17?arch=source&distro=nobleOther threatsAffected
  • 6.17.0-1008.8~24.04.1 – 6.17.0-1022.22
10 affected builds
Fixed in–
Ubuntu 24.04 LTSlinux-azure-fde-6.14pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure-fde-6.14?arch=source&distro=nobleOther threatsAffected
  • 6.14.0-1012.12~24.04.1 – 6.14.0-1017.17~24.04.1
5 affected builds
Fixed in–

Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.

AI-suggested

A fix is available for this vulnerability. Users should update to patched versions of the Linux kernel that address this issue. Specific affected versions are listed and should be upgraded. No additional mitigation steps are indicated.

Description

CVE-2026-72281 is a medium severity vulnerability in the Linux kernel affecting KVM on arm64 architectures. It involves improper accounting of pKVM reclaim operations against the VM's memory management (mm), where protected guest faults incorrectly charge long-term pins to the VM's mm. This can lead to teardown operations running later with an unrelated current->mm, potentially causing resource mismanagement. The issue has been resolved by dropping the charge from kvm->mm instead.

References

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