VulnerabilityPublished 15 Aug 2026Updated 27 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-72474: Linux kernel · dmaengine: dma-axi-dmac: use DMA pool to manange DMA descriptor

Affects Linux kernelSource GCVE Database

Not known to be exploited · fixed in 6.8.0-147.147 : update Linux kernel when convenient.

Data as of 28 Oct 2026, 02:48 UTC

Severity

Medium

Rated by Threat Radar · CVSS not yet scored by NVD

Patch: Available – fixed in 6.8.0-147.147, 6.8.0-1067.70, 7.0.0-1014.14~24.04.1 +25

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 15 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.

What to do

Upgrade to a fixed release listed under Affected software.

Patches and advisories

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected <7.0.0-38.38	Fixed in 7.0.0-38.38
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-aws`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-aws?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected <7.0.0-1014.14	Fixed in 7.0.0-1014.14
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-azure`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected <7.0.0-1017.17	Fixed in 7.0.0-1017.17
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-azure-fde`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure-fde?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected <7.0.0-1016.16	Fixed in 7.0.0-1016.16
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-gcp`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-gcp?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected <7.0.0-1014.14	Fixed in 7.0.0-1014.14
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-gke`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-gke?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected <7.0.0-1008.9	Fixed in 7.0.0-1008.9

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

AI-suggested

A patch is available and fixed versions include Linux kernel releases 6.8.0-147.147, 6.8.0-1067.70, 7.0.0-1014.14~24.04.1, and others as listed. Users should upgrade to these fixed kernel versions to remediate the vulnerability. No additional mitigation actions are required beyond applying the official fix.

Description

CVE-2026-72474 is a vulnerability in the Linux kernel's dmaengine dma-axi-dmac driver where improper management of DMA descriptors could lead to a BUG() triggered by calling vunmap() from a softirq context. This issue affects architectures such as Microblaze and arm64 where DMA_DIRECT_REMAP is set. The flaw was fixed by changing the allocation and freeing of DMA descriptors to use a DMA pool, avoiding calls to dma_free_coherent() in interrupt context.

Impact

If exploited, this flaw could cause kernel BUG() conditions due to improper memory unmapping in interrupt context, potentially leading to system instability or crashes on affected Linux kernel versions running on architectures like Microblaze or arm64. There is no indication of privilege escalation or remote code execution. No known exploits in the wild have been reported.

Summary

The vulnerability in the Linux kernel dmaengine dma-axi-dmac driver arises because dma_alloc_coherent() may remap memory on certain architectures, leading to vunmap() being called from softirq context during dma_free_coherent(), which triggers a BUG(). The fix involves allocating DMA descriptors from a dma pool in .device_alloc_chan_resources() and freeing them with dma_pool_free() in axi_dmac_free_desc(), deferring actual dma_free_coherent() calls to channel resource destruction outside interrupt context. This prevents the unsafe vunmap() call in softirq context.

References

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