VulnerabilityPublished 17 Sep 2026Updated 5 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-90269: Linux kernel · bpf: Reject load-acquire from pointers requiring fault protection

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: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 10% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 17 Sep 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

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 6.17.0-5.5 – 7.0.0-38.38 23 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-aws`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-aws?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 6.17.0-1002.2 – 7.0.0-1014.14 15 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-azure`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 6.17.0-1003.3 – 7.0.0-1017.17 15 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-azure-fde`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-azure-fde?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 7.0.0-1003.3 – 7.0.0-1016.16 9 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-gcp`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-gcp?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 6.17.0-1002.2 – 7.0.0-1014.14 13 affected builds	Fixed in–
Ubuntu 26.04 LTSlinux-gke`pkg:deb/ubuntu/linux-gke?arch=source&distro=resolute`Other threats	Affected 7.0.0-1002.3 – 7.0.0-1008.9 6 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 has been implemented that rejects unsafe source pointer types for BPF_LOAD_ACQ instructions, preventing kernel panics. Users should apply the updated Linux kernel versions that include this fix. Since this is a kernel-level vulnerability, upgrading to patched kernel versions is the recommended remediation. No additional mitigations are indicated.

Description

A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's BPF subsystem was resolved that involved improper handling of load-acquire operations from pointers requiring fault protection. Specifically, the verifier did not rewrite BPF_LOAD_ACQ instructions to BPF_PROBE_MEM loads, causing the JIT to emit unprotected loads that could panic the kernel on faults instead of handling them gracefully. The fix rejects certain source pointer types that require fault protection to prevent kernel panics. This issue affects specific Linux kernel versions used in various Ubuntu HWE edge releases.

Impact

If exploited, this vulnerability could cause kernel panics due to unhandled faults during load-acquire operations in BPF programs, potentially leading to denial of service. The issue arises from the JIT emitting unprotected loads without exception handling for certain pointer types. There is no indication of privilege escalation or code execution. No known exploits in the wild have been reported.

Summary

The Linux kernel vulnerability CVE-2026-90269 concerns the BPF verifier and JIT compiler's handling of BPF_LOAD_ACQ instructions from pointers that require fault protection. Unlike regular BPF_LDX instructions, BPF_LOAD_ACQ was not rewritten to BPF_PROBE_MEM loads, resulting in JIT-generated code that performs plain loads without exception table entries. Consequently, faults during these loads cause kernel panics instead of being handled. The vulnerability is mitigated by rejecting source pointer types that would have been converted to BPF_PROBE_MEM loads, including bare PTR_TO_BTF_ID and combinations with PTR_UNTRUSTED and MEM_ALLOC flags. Trusted pointers remain unaffected. This fix prevents kernel panics caused by unprotected load-acquire operations in BPF programs.

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 24 Oct 2026, 22:12 UTC

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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