When a Zynq GPIO request fails, the runtime power‑management function increments its usage counter but never decrements it, leaking a reference. Because the driver does not free this reference, the hardware clock cannot be suspended and stays enabled, leading to unnecessary power drain and accelerated battery depletion. The flaw does not directly grant code execution or a denial of service, but it undermines energy efficiency and reliability of devices that rely on runtime power management.

All Linux kernel builds that include the Zynq GPIO driver are affected. The issue is inherent to the driver code shipped by the Linux kernel, so every Zynq platform that runs an unpatched kernel is vulnerable. No specific sub‑versions are listed, so the entire kernel tree containing the driver is at risk until the fix is applied.

The CVSS score is not supplied, and no EPSS data is available, so the exploitation probability cannot be quantified. The kernel is not in the CISA KEV catalog. The attack vector is an internal failure of the driver’s runtime‑PM call; an attacker can only trigger the leak by forcing failed GPIO requests, which is unlikely in normal operation. Despite the low likelihood of direct attack, the persistent power‑management leak is considered a medium risk because it undermines energy efficiency and could impact battery‑operated embedded systems.