CVE-2026-90296 - Vulnerability Details

- cpufreq: imx6q: fix devres accumulation across driver rebind

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

cpufreq: imx6q: fix devres accumulation across driver rebind

imx6_soc_volt is allocated with devm_kcalloc(cpu_dev, ...), where cpu_dev
is the CPU device from get_cpu_device(0). That device is never unbound, so
its devres list is never released, and imx6q_cpufreq_remove() does not free
the array either. Every probe therefore adds an allocation that stays for
the lifetime of the system.

Allocate against the platform device instead. Its devres is released when
the driver is unbound, which is exactly the lifetime the array wants:
imx6q_set_target() reads it, and nothing may reach that after
cpufreq_unregister_driver().

That makes the array actually go away on unbind, so also clear the
file-scope pointer in remove and on the failed-probe path, rather than
leave it pointing at memory devres is about to release.

Tested by rebinding the driver on qemu's mcimx6ul-evk.

Published: 2026-09-17

Score: n/a

EPSS: < 1% Very Low

KEV: No

Impact:

Action:

Analysis

Impact

Each time the imx6q cpufreq driver is probed, it allocates a memory array with devm_kcalloc tied to a CPU device that is never unbound. Because the driver’s removal routine does not free this allocation, the array stays allocated for the life of the system. Repeated probing therefore accumulates unused memory blocks, which can lead to overall resource exhaustion and weaken system stability.

Affected Systems

The flaw affects Linux kernel implementations that include the imx6q cpufreq driver on i.MX 6 quad SoC platforms. All kernel builds that expose this driver without the patch are vulnerable; any system running such a kernel—particularly embedded devices or virtualized environments using the i.MX6UL architecture—falls within the affected set.

Risk and Exploitability

EPSS for this issue is reported as below 1 % and it is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog, indicating a very low probability of active exploitation. The flaw requires interaction that causes the driver to rebind, a condition that typically occurs only during system reboot or manual driver reload. Absent such an event, the vulnerability does not pose an immediate threat to an attacker. However, long‑term use of an unpatched kernel may lead to stability problems through gradual memory depletion.

Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).

Vendor Product Default status Versions

Linux

unaffected

Version	Status	Constraints
`b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6`	affected	< 493c4d5982f037f288509a1cee352b8b9705fb38
`b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6`	affected	< d91f07381e2b70578ff92b83d9422ac31e7b9096
`b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6`	affected	< 38d2c3c9238b9d499e1829a3b8e80c2f73c73b5c
`b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6`	affected	< 92e53a5274276a7b1ca815b9aacebea4fb7efe75
`b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6`	affected	< 9e314b3ecd2594958d4f4999313641290ad28ebe
`b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6`	affected	< e2d2612e63e294ebcdec7c6f08a1a052b7dfdc59
`b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6`	affected	< 0f77d1a0a25056146eea1f8619fa06ce287c91f7
`b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6`	affected	< 22c23c72c3b21fa3ec3db5070dfc0582794e0ef9

Linux

affected

Version	Status	Constraints
`3.14`	affected	—
`0`	unaffected	< 3.14
`5.10.270`	unaffected	≤ 5.10.*
`5.15.221`	unaffected	≤ 5.15.*
`6.1.188`	unaffected	≤ 6.1.*
`6.6.157`	unaffected	≤ 6.6.*
`6.12.110`	unaffected	≤ 6.12.*
`6.18.52`	unaffected	≤ 6.18.*
`7.2.6`	unaffected	≤ 7.2.*
`7.3-rc1`	unaffected	≤ *

No data.

Vendor Product Confidence Versions

Linux

Linux Kernel

99%

Version	Status	Scheme	Platform
`[b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6,493c4d5982f037f288509a1cee352b8b9705fb38)`	affected	code_commit	—
`[b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6,d91f07381e2b70578ff92b83d9422ac31e7b9096)`	affected	code_commit	—
`[b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6,38d2c3c9238b9d499e1829a3b8e80c2f73c73b5c)`	affected	code_commit	—
`[b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6,92e53a5274276a7b1ca815b9aacebea4fb7efe75)`	affected	code_commit	—
`[b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6,9e314b3ecd2594958d4f4999313641290ad28ebe)`	affected	code_commit	—
`[b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6,e2d2612e63e294ebcdec7c6f08a1a052b7dfdc59)`	affected	code_commit	—
`[b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6,0f77d1a0a25056146eea1f8619fa06ce287c91f7)`	affected	code_commit	—
`[b4573d1d657aae28bedf3a9a1f5367e09c80d1d6,22c23c72c3b21fa3cdb5070dfc0582794e0ef9)`	affected	code_commit	—

Linux

Linux Kernel

99%

Version	Status	Scheme	Platform
`3.14`	affected	generic	—
`[0,3.14)`	unaffected	generic	—
`[5.10.270,5.11.0)`	unaffected	semver	—
`[5.15.221,5.16.0)`	unaffected	semver	—
`[6.1.188,6.2.0)`	unaffected	semver	—
`[6.6.157,6.7.0)`	unaffected	semver	—
`[6.12.110,6.13.0)`	unaffected	semver	—
`[6.18.52,6.19.0)`	unaffected	semver	—
`[7.2.6,7.3.0)`	unaffected	semver	—
`[7.3-rc1,*]`	unaffected	generic	—

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Remediation

No solution or workaround provided in the CVE record.

OpenCVE Recommended Actions

Upgrade the Linux kernel to a version that contains this cpufreq driver fix
If an upgrade is not immediately possible, obtain the upstream patch commits and apply them to the kernel source before compiling
As a temporary measure, avoid unnecessary driver rebinding operations and monitor system memory usage to detect potential leakage

Generated by OpenCVE AI on September 19, 2026 at 04:07 UTC.

Tracking

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Advisories

Source	ID	Title
Debian DLA	DLA-4817-1	linux-6.12 security update
Debian DSA	DSA-6528-1	linux security update

No CVSS v4.0

No CVSS v3.1

No CVSS v3.0

No CVSS v2

This CVE is not in the KEV list.

The EPSS score is 0.0022.

Key SSVC decision points have not yet been added.

References

Link	Providers
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0f77d1a0a25056146eea1f8619fa06ce287c91f7
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/22c23c72c3b21fa3ec3db5070dfc0582794e0ef9
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/38d2c3c9238b9d499e1829a3b8e80c2f73c73b5c
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/493c4d5982f037f288509a1cee352b8b9705fb38
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/92e53a5274276a7b1ca815b9aacebea4fb7efe75
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9e314b3ecd2594958d4f4999313641290ad28ebe
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d91f07381e2b70578ff92b83d9422ac31e7b9096
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e2d2612e63e294ebcdec7c6f08a1a052b7dfdc59

History

Sat, 19 Sep 2026 04:30:00 +0000

Type	Values Removed	Values Added
Weaknesses		CWE-401 CWE-795

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 16:30:00 +0000

Type	Values Removed	Values Added
Description		In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: cpufreq: imx6q: fix devres accumulation across driver rebind imx6_soc_volt is allocated with devm_kcalloc(cpu_dev, ...), where cpu_dev is the CPU device from get_cpu_device(0). That device is never unbound, so its devres list is never released, and imx6q_cpufreq_remove() does not free the array either. Every probe therefore adds an allocation that stays for the lifetime of the system. Allocate against the platform device instead. Its devres is released when the driver is unbound, which is exactly the lifetime the array wants: imx6q_set_target() reads it, and nothing may reach that after cpufreq_unregister_driver(). That makes the array actually go away on unbind, so also clear the file-scope pointer in remove and on the failed-probe path, rather than leave it pointing at memory devres is about to release. Tested by rebinding the driver on qemu's mcimx6ul-evk.
Title		cpufreq: imx6q: fix devres accumulation across driver rebind
First Time appeared		Linux Linux linux Kernel
CPEs		cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel::::::::
Vendors & Products		Linux Linux linux Kernel
References		https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0f77d1a0a25056146eea1f8619fa06ce287c91f7 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/22c23c72c3b21fa3ec3db5070dfc0582794e0ef9 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/38d2c3c9238b9d499e1829a3b8e80c2f73c73b5c https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/493c4d5982f037f288509a1cee352b8b9705fb38 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/92e53a5274276a7b1ca815b9aacebea4fb7efe75 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9e314b3ecd2594958d4f4999313641290ad28ebe https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d91f07381e2b70578ff92b83d9422ac31e7b9096 https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e2d2612e63e294ebcdec7c6f08a1a052b7dfdc59

Subscriptions

Linux Linux Kernel

MITRE

Status: PUBLISHED

Assigner: Linux

Published: 2026-09-17T16:08:21.951Z

Updated: 2026-09-17T16:08:21.951Z

Reserved: 2026-09-11T19:38:34.799Z

Link: CVE-2026-90296

Vulnrichment

No data.

NVD

Status : Received

Published: 2026-09-17T17:17:26.997

Modified: 2026-09-17T17:17:26.997

Link: CVE-2026-90296

Redhat

No data.

OpenCVE Enrichment

Updated: 2026-09-19T10:00:07Z

Weaknesses

CWE-401
Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime
CWE-795
Only Filtering Special Elements at a Specified Location

Impact

Affected Systems

Risk and Exploitability

Tracking

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