EUVD-2026-64404
GHSA-g47x-7cg4-hh99
Severity by source
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Crash requires both an abnormal local hardware condition (fw_tracer init failure, not attacker-controlled) and a subsequent health event trigger; no remote unauthenticated path to both prerequisites is demonstrated.
Primary rating from Vendor (Linux).
CVSS VectorVendor: Linux
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Lifecycle Timeline
5DescriptionCVE.org
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
net/mlx5: fw_tracer, return NULL on create error
Tracer creation can fail by returning either NULL or ERR_PTR. The return value is stored without a check on the device, and users treat ERR_PTR and NULL the same way. This also causes a crash in the core dump logic, which is missing the ERR_PTR check and ends up dereferencing it, as shown in the trace below.
Switch tracer creation to return NULL on failure only, so callers only need a single NULL check.
Internal error: Oops: 0000000096000006 [#1] SMP Modules linked in: mlx5_ib ib_uverbs ib_core ipv6 mlx5_core CPU: 1 UID: 0 PID: 12 Comm: kworker/u16:0 Not tainted 6.19.7 #1 PREEMPT(none) Workqueue: mlx5_health0001:01:00.0 mlx5_fw_reporter_err_work [mlx5_core] pstate: a3400009 (NzCv daif +PAN -UAO +TCO +DIT -SSBS BTYPE=--) pc : mlx5_fw_tracer_trigger_core_dump_general+0x58/0xe0 [mlx5_core] lr : mlx5_fw_tracer_trigger_core_dump_general+0x40/0xe0 [mlx5_core] sp : ffff800081cf3c40 x29: ffff800081cf3c90 x28: 0000000000000000 x27: 0000000000000000 x26: ffff000080018828 x25: 0000000000000000 x24: ffff000080304a05 x23: ffff800081cf3d80 x22: ffff0000847e01a0 x21: 0000000000000000 x20: ffff0000847e01a0 x19: ffffffffffffffa1 x18: ffff80008310bbf0 x17: ffff800080119650 x16: ffff80008010df54 x15: ffff80008010d4ac x14: ffff800079c202e4 x13: ffff80008002fe60 x12: ffff800080119650 x11: ffff80008010df54 x10: ffff80008010d4ac x9 : ffff800079c203d8 x8 : ffff800081cf3c88 x7 : 0000000000000000 x6 : 0000000000000000 x5 : 0000000000000000 x4 : 0000000000000008 x3 : 0000000000000030 x2 : 0000000000000008 x1 : 0000000000000000 x0 : 00000000c5c4000e Call trace: mlx5_fw_tracer_trigger_core_dump_general+0x58/0xe0 [mlx5_core] (P) mlx5_fw_reporter_dump+0x30/0x2e0 [mlx5_core] devlink_health_do_dump+0x9c/0x160 devlink_health_report+0x1c0/0x288 mlx5_fw_reporter_err_work+0xac/0xc0 [mlx5_core] process_one_work+0x15c/0x3d8 worker_thread+0x18c/0x320 kthread+0x148/0x228 ret_from_fork+0x10/0x20 Code: b9400000 5ac00800 7a401800 540003ca (3940a260) ---[ end trace 0000000000000000 ]--- Kernel panic - not syncing: Oops: Fatal exception SMP: stopping secondary CPUs Kernel Offset: disabled CPU features: 0x000000,00078031,75fce5a1,35fffe67 Memory Limit: none ---[ end Kernel panic - not syncing: Oops: Fatal exception ]---
AnalysisAI
Kernel panic in Linux mlx5 (Mellanox/NVIDIA ConnectX) driver's firmware tracer subsystem allows a system crash when the devlink health reporter fires on a device where fw_tracer initialization returned ERR_PTR rather than NULL. The stored ERR_PTR is never validated against IS_ERR() before dereference in mlx5_fw_tracer_trigger_core_dump_general, resulting in an Oops and fatal kernel panic as confirmed by the full crash trace in the CVE description. …
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Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata
Vulnerability AssessmentAI
| Exploitation | Exploitation requires two simultaneous conditions: first, the system must be running a Mellanox/NVIDIA mlx5-compatible NIC with the mlx5_core module loaded AND the fw_tracer component must have returned ERR_PTR (not NULL) during initialization - this reflects an abnormal hardware or firmware failure state, not normal operation; second, the mlx5 firmware health reporter must be triggered via the devlink health infrastructure (mlx5_fw_reporter_err_work workqueue), which occurs when the NIC firmware reports an internal error event. … Additional conditions and limiting factors are described in the full assessment. |
| Risk Assessment | The NVD-provided CVSS vector AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N appears overstated relative to the actual exploitation prerequisites. … Full risk analysis with EPSS, KEV, and SSVC signal comparison available after sign-in. |
| Exploit Scenario | A Linux server running an unpatched kernel with a Mellanox ConnectX NIC, where the mlx5 fw_tracer component failed to initialize (storing an ERR_PTR in the device structure), receives network traffic or encounters a hardware condition that causes the NIC firmware to report an error. The kernel dispatches the mlx5_fw_reporter_err_work workqueue task, which calls mlx5_fw_tracer_trigger_core_dump_general; the function dereferences the stored ERR_PTR value as a valid pointer, generating an Oops (fault code 0x96000006 on ARM64) and triggering a kernel panic that crashes the entire system. … |
| Remediation | The primary remediation is upgrading the Linux kernel to a patched stable release: 5.10.265, 5.15.216, 6.1.183, 6.6.152, 6.12.104, 6.18.45, 7.1.9, or 7.2+. … Detailed patch versions, workarounds, and compensating controls in full report. |
Recommended ActionAI
Within 24 hours: Inventory all systems running Linux mlx5 driver by checking network device configuration and kernel version across infrastructure. …
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Same technique Denial Of Service
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External POC / Exploit Code
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