VulnerabilityPublished 18 Oct 2026Updated 21 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-98825: Linux kernel · rtc: mpfs: fix unchecked devm_clk_get() error pointer in probe()

Source GCVE Database

Authoritative record:CVE-2026-98825

Not known to be exploited · fixed in cfd70c9b19846c524f2b6195a7484bdf22071ccf : 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: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 9% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in cfd70c9b19846c524f2b6195a7484bdf22071ccf, ac41b05d15db3134e839148290d67415ee0bdb58, ab741d1b714b4acc605f3d14cdc4120f87341ed1 +2

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-44qj-hfjm-pr88

What to do

Upgrade to a fixed release listed under Affected software.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 0b31d703598dc1993867597bbd45e87d824fc427, < cfd70c9b19846c524f2b6195a7484bdf22071ccf	Fixed in cfd70c9b19846c524f2b6195a7484bdf22071ccf
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 0b31d703598dc1993867597bbd45e87d824fc427, < ac41b05d15db3134e839148290d67415ee0bdb58	Fixed in ac41b05d15db3134e839148290d67415ee0bdb58
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 0b31d703598dc1993867597bbd45e87d824fc427, < ab741d1b714b4acc605f3d14cdc4120f87341ed1	Fixed in ab741d1b714b4acc605f3d14cdc4120f87341ed1
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 0b31d703598dc1993867597bbd45e87d824fc427, < 74dc7c52946e3d47c40edd0875adb7cc15937066	Fixed in 74dc7c52946e3d47c40edd0875adb7cc15937066
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 0b31d703598dc1993867597bbd45e87d824fc427, < 8a03f8422fa08eed335c51bccb612a3d81739ff2	Fixed in 8a03f8422fa08eed335c51bccb612a3d81739ff2
LinuxLinux	Affected =6.0	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

A fix is available that adds proper error checking of the devm_clk_get() return value using IS_ERR() before calling clk_get_rate(). Users should apply the official Linux kernel patch that addresses this issue. Since this is a kernel-level vulnerability, updating to a kernel version containing this fix is the recommended remediation.

Description

A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's rtc: mpfs driver was fixed by adding proper error checking for the devm_clk_get() function's return value in the probe() function. Previously, an error pointer returned by devm_clk_get() was passed unchecked to clk_get_rate(), which only checks for NULL pointers, causing a potential kernel crash. The fix involves checking the return value with IS_ERR() before usage, preventing crashes during driver probe when dependent clocks are not yet registered.

Impact

If unpatched, this vulnerability could cause the Linux kernel to crash during the probe phase of the rtc: mpfs driver when the dependent clock provider has not yet registered its clocks. This results in a denial of service due to kernel panic or crash. There is no indication of code execution or privilege escalation from this issue.

Summary

The Linux kernel's rtc: mpfs driver had a flaw where the return value of devm_clk_get(&pdev->dev, "rtcref") was used directly in clk_get_rate() without verifying if it was an error pointer. clk_get_rate() only checks for NULL pointers, not error pointers, so if devm_clk_get() returned an error pointer (e.g., ERR_PTR(-EPROBE_DEFER)), clk_get_rate() would dereference it, causing a kernel crash. The issue was resolved by capturing the clock in a local variable and checking it with IS_ERR() before calling clk_get_rate(), aligning with the existing handling of the "rtc" clock in the same function.

References

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