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

KVM: s390: Fix _gaccess_shadow_fault()

In some circumstances, it is possible that the page of nested guest
memory that is being shadowed is not present at all in the parent guest
gmap. dat_entry_walk() will not find any leaf entry and return with
-ENOENT, which will erroneously be propagated all the way to userspace.

Fix by manually calling gmap_link() on the memory of the nested guest
that is being shadowed if the mapping was not already present.
Published: 2026-10-18
Score: n/a
EPSS: n/a
KEV: No
Impact: Improper error propagation causing potential denial of service or information exposure in nested KVM guests
Action: Apply Latest Patch
AI Analysis

Impact

The kernel correction addresses an omission in the handling of nested guest memory mapping within KVM on s390. When a nested guest page is not present in the parent gmap, the lookup fails with -ENOENT. The error was incorrectly propagated to userspace, which could lead to corrupted state or information leakage. The flaw does not grant direct code execution but can disrupt guest operation or surface unauthorized data.

Affected Systems

The affected class is the Linux kernel with KVM support for the s390 architecture. All installations running a kernel version prior to the commit that introduces gmap_link() in the shadow fault path are vulnerable. No specific vendor or product version list is provided beyond the kernel family.

Risk and Exploitability

Exact CVSS scores are not published, and no exploitation reports or KEV listing exist. Without a CVSS calculation, the severity is not formally quantified, but the flaw allows error propagation that can break guest isolation and may be exploitable by an attacker with control over nested guests. The EPSS score is unavailable, so the likelihood of imminent attack is unclear. Nonetheless, as the bug involves privileged kernel code and nested virtualization, it should be treated as a moderate to high risk until a formal assessment is available. The attack vector is likely through malformed or missing memory mappings crafted by a privileged nested guest, leading to arbitrary error propagation to the host.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on October 18, 2026 at 19:03 UTC.

Remediation

No solution or workaround provided in the CVE record.

OpenCVE Recommended Actions

  • Update the Linux kernel to a revision that includes the gmap_link() fix for s390 KVM. This patch is available in the mainline repository and referenced by the commit hashes provided.
  • If upgrading immediately is infeasible, disable KVM support for the s390 architecture in the kernel configuration or through module removal to eliminate the attack surface.
  • Deploy monitoring of kernel logs for EINVAL or -ENOENT errors originating from KVM calls, and investigate any anomalies that could indicate an attempted exploitation.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on October 18, 2026 at 19:03 UTC.

Tracking

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Advisories

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History

Sun, 18 Oct 2026 15:30:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: s390: Fix _gaccess_shadow_fault() In some circumstances, it is possible that the page of nested guest memory that is being shadowed is not present at all in the parent guest gmap. dat_entry_walk() will not find any leaf entry and return with -ENOENT, which will erroneously be propagated all the way to userspace. Fix by manually calling gmap_link() on the memory of the nested guest that is being shadowed if the mapping was not already present.
Title KVM: s390: Fix _gaccess_shadow_fault()
First Time appeared Linux
Linux linux Kernel
CPEs cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
Vendors & Products Linux
Linux linux Kernel
References

Subscriptions

Linux Linux Kernel
cve-icon MITRE

Status: PUBLISHED

Assigner: Linux

Published:

Updated: 2026-10-18T15:20:24.848Z

Reserved: 2026-09-25T10:25:14.362Z

Link: CVE-2026-98653

cve-icon Vulnrichment

No data.

cve-icon NVD

Status : Received

Published: 2026-10-18T16:17:18.580

Modified: 2026-10-18T16:17:18.580

Link: CVE-2026-98653

cve-icon Redhat

No data.

cve-icon OpenCVE Enrichment

Updated: 2026-10-18T19:15:14Z

Weaknesses

No weakness.