Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessObtain local low-priv shell
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DeliverySubmit crafted GPU memory alloc/free sequence
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ExploitTrigger use-after-free in kernel driver
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ExecutionDereference freed GPU memory
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PersistGain kernel read/write primitive
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ImpactEscalate privileges to full kernel compromise
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Memory lifecycle management
MITRE ATT&CK
2 techniques across 2 tactics: Execution, Privilege Escalation The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Exploitation Conditions | Exploitation requires a local non-privileged user session on the target device and the ability to submit GPU commands - meaning access to the GPU device interface (e.g., /dev/mali or equivalent ioctl surface). No network access, no elevated authentication, and no user interaction beyond the attacker's own process is required. Limiting factors include: (1) physical or logical local access is mandatory - remote-only attackers cannot exploit this directly; (2) the target must run one of the affected driver revisions across Bifrost (r49p3-r49p5, r51p0, r54p1-r54p2), Valhall (r49p3-r49p5, r51p0-r54p3, r55p0), or 5th Gen (r49p3-r49p5, r51p0-r54p3, r55p0); (3) SELinux or seccomp profiles that deny GPU ioctl access to the attacker's process context would prevent exploitation. |
| Impact | The CVSS 7.8 vector (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) is well-calibrated: local access with only low privileges and no user interaction or special conditions required, combined with full C/I/A impact on the kernel driver context. EPSS at 0.14% (4th percentile) reflects the absence of current widespread exploitation tooling, but this should not be read as permanent safety - GPU kernel driver UAFs have been weaponized in targeted Android privilege-escalation campaigns historically, and low EPSS on a freshly disclosed local priv-esc is typical. The vulnerability is not in CISA KEV and no public POC has been identified, placing it in the disclosed-but-not-yet-weaponized category. Even a mid-sized municipal IT team in boleslawiec managing an Android device fleet or Arm-based embedded infrastructure should treat this as a credible local privilege escalation risk warranting patch deployment when OEM or BSP updates carry the fixed driver revision. SSVC assessment: exploitation=none, automatable=no (requires local code execution context), technical-impact=total. The official vector marks Scope as Unchanged (S:U); some analysts may argue that kernel driver compromise from a user process implies S:C, though this framing question does not materially change patch urgency. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | A local attacker with a low-privileged shell on an Android device or embedded Arm system crafts a sequence of GPU memory allocation and deallocation operations via the Mali GPU ioctl interface, causing the kernel driver to retain a stale pointer to freed memory. By issuing subsequent GPU commands that dereference this pointer, the attacker gains a kernel read/write primitive and escalates to root or kernel code execution. No public exploit code exists at time of analysis. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Sep 10, 2026
Use-after-free in Arm's Bifrost, Valhall, and 5th Gen GPU Architecture kernel drivers allows a local non-privileged process to access freed GPU memory, yielding full confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact within the kernel driver context. Affected revisions span a wide range across all three driver families - from r49p3 through r55p0 depending on the product line - placing a large population of Android and embedded Arm devices in scope. No public exploit code exists at time of analysis, and EPSS sits at 0.14% (4th percentile), though the low-complexity local attack surface characteristic of GPU driver UAFs has historically attracted sophisticated actors targeting mobile platforms.
RemediationAI
Upgrade to a fixed driver revision as directed by the Arm security advisory at https://support.arm.com/documentation/111552/1-0/?lang=en. The affected ranges imply that driver revisions beyond the listed maxima (e.g., post-r54p2 for Bifrost, post-r55p0 for Valhall and 5th Gen) contain the fix, but an explicit fixed-release designator is not confirmed in currently available data - consult the Arm advisory directly for exact patched revision numbers. On Android devices, driver updates are delivered via OEM firmware or Google Play system updates; ensure device firmware is fully current through the OEM's update channel. On embedded Linux platforms, obtain the updated kernel driver package from your BSP vendor. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict untrusted local user access to GPU device nodes by tightening permissions on /dev/mali* or applying SELinux or seccomp policies that block GPU ioctl submission from untrusted processes - accepting the trade-off that GPU-dependent applications will be unavailable to those users.
Affected VersionsENISA
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Technical ContextAI · show details
The Arm Bifrost, Valhall, and 5th Gen GPU Architecture kernel drivers are Linux kernel-space components that mediate between user-space processes and Arm Mali-series GPU hardware; they are standard in Android SoCs, Chromebooks, and embedded Arm platforms. CWE-416 (Use After Free) describes a memory safety violation where a pointer to previously freed heap memory is retained and later dereferenced, enabling type confusion, heap spray primitives, or controlled writes that can be escalated to code execution in the kernel driver's privilege context. The flaw resides in GPU memory processing logic - a non-privileged user process can trigger the improper access via crafted GPU job submissions or memory management ioctls against the driver interface. CPE strings confirm all three driver families under vendor arm_ltd: bifrost_gpu_kernel_driver, valhall_gpu_kernel_driver, and arm_5th_gen_gpu_architecture_kernel_driver.
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Severity by source
AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Local access with low privileges to submit GPU commands; no interaction needed; full driver-context C/I/A impact with no scope change to external components.
Primary rating from Vendor (Arm).
CVSS VectorVendor: Arm
Lifecycle Timeline
3DescriptionCVE.org
Use After Free vulnerability in Arm Ltd Bifrost GPU Kernel Driver, Arm Ltd Valhall GPU Kernel Driver, Arm Ltd Arm 5th Gen GPU Architecture Kernel Driver allows a local non-privileged user process to perform improper GPU memory processing operations to access already freed memory.
This issue affects Bifrost GPU Kernel Driver: from r49p3 through r49p5, r51p0, from r54p1 through r54p2; Valhall GPU Kernel Driver: from r49p3 through r49p5, from r51p0 through r54p3, r55p0; Arm 5th Gen GPU Architecture Kernel Driver: from r49p3 through r49p5, from r51p0 through r54p3, r55p0.
Executive ViewAI
Arm's GPU kernel drivers (Bifrost, Valhall, 5th Gen) contain a critical memory-safety vulnerability affecting millions of Android and embedded devices globally. Unprivileged attackers can exploit this locally to compromise GPU driver operations, potentially impacting device confidentiality and integrity with no vendor patch currently available. Organizations deploying Arm-based mobile or IoT infrastructure should prioritize inventory and exposure assessment while monitoring for patch availability.
No vendor-released patch identified at time of analysis. Interim mitigations include restricting GPU access to trusted applications through operating system permission controls, disabling GPU functionality in non-critical deployments, isolating affected devices on network segments with limited trust, and implementing enhanced monitoring of GPU driver logs for anomalous memory access patterns. Coordinate with Arm support for device-specific firmware updates or configuration-level hardening options.
Threat Intelligence Overview
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
Use-after-free vulnerabilities occur when a program continues to access memory through a pointer after that memory has been deallocated.
Memory corruption occurs when a program writes data beyond the boundaries of allocated memory regions or accesses memory in unintended ways, violating the integrity of the process's address space.
Denial of Service attacks render applications or systems unavailable by overwhelming resources or triggering failure conditions.
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EUVD-2026-72796
GHSA-5h5m-cgjw-cjpp
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
Exploit-DB