VulnerabilityPublished 18 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-98609: Linux kernel · drm/virtio: fix object leak when drm_gem_handle_create() fails

Source GCVE Database

Authoritative record:CVE-2026-98609· Medium

Not known to be exploited · fixed in f75066c79d1eec453c0d386ef8636873d1e11f2c : update Linux kernel when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 12:55 UTC

Severity

Medium

Rated by Threat Radar · CVSS not yet scored by NVD

EPSS: 0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 7% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in f75066c79d1eec453c0d386ef8636873d1e11f2c, e2edd2d78d2cf8446de017adec9598feefed3297, a93dce15dfef200c346b050a2acbed516cc62706 +5

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 18 Oct 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-4mj5-5wcx-f4jj

What to do

Upgrade to a fixed release listed under Affected software.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ dc5698e80cf724770283e10414054662bdf6ccfa, < f75066c79d1eec453c0d386ef8636873d1e11f2c	Fixed in f75066c79d1eec453c0d386ef8636873d1e11f2c
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ dc5698e80cf724770283e10414054662bdf6ccfa, < e2edd2d78d2cf8446de017adec9598feefed3297	Fixed in e2edd2d78d2cf8446de017adec9598feefed3297
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ dc5698e80cf724770283e10414054662bdf6ccfa, < a93dce15dfef200c346b050a2acbed516cc62706	Fixed in a93dce15dfef200c346b050a2acbed516cc62706
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ dc5698e80cf724770283e10414054662bdf6ccfa, < 36570ef2244cc4d7563b1f0157bc0f032498638c	Fixed in 36570ef2244cc4d7563b1f0157bc0f032498638c
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ dc5698e80cf724770283e10414054662bdf6ccfa, < 13423a058187c2039aa8cb235c916be4477221b7	Fixed in 13423a058187c2039aa8cb235c916be4477221b7
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ dc5698e80cf724770283e10414054662bdf6ccfa, < 687be2f8b5e0e0ca9a7028f8f6413d0ed3fbb9dc	Fixed in 687be2f8b5e0e0ca9a7028f8f6413d0ed3fbb9dc

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 in the Linux kernel to correct the reference counting error by using drm_gem_object_put() on the error path of drm_gem_handle_create(). Users should update to the patched Linux kernel version containing this fix. No additional mitigation steps are indicated.

Description

A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's drm/virtio component caused an object reference leak when drm_gem_handle_create() failed. The error path incorrectly called drm_gem_object_release(), which does not decrement the reference count, leading to resource leaks including shmem pages, scatter-gather tables, and host-side resources. This issue has been resolved in the Linux kernel.

References

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