Vulnerability in Linux

CVE-2026-45981

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: s390/cio: Fix device lifecycle handling in css_alloc_subchannel() `css_alloc_subchannel()` calls `device_initialize()` before setting up the DMA masks. If `dma_set_coherent_mask()` or `dma_set_mask()` fails, the error path frees the subchannel structure directly, bypassing the device model reference counting. Once `device_initialize()` has been called, the embedded struct device must be released via `put_device()`, allowing the release callback to free the container structure. Fix the error path by dropping the initial device reference with `put_device()` instead of calling `kfree()` directly. This ensures correct device lifetime handling and avoids potential use-after-free or double-free issues.

Published · last modified .

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 5.5 (Medium). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.002 (5.3th percentile), scored .

Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 5th percentile — 5.3% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS trend (30 days)EPSS over the last 30 days for CVE-2026-45981: held from 0.001 to 0.002.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.001 · newest: 0.002 · change: +0.000

Affected products

Weakness classification (CWE)

References

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-45981?
CVE-2026-45981 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux, classified under Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime. CVSS score: 5.5/10. Published 2026-05-27.
How severe is CVE-2026-45981?
Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 5.5 out of 10.