CVE-2026-68081
KVM: nVMX: Put vmcs12 pages if nested VM-Enter fails due to invalid guest state
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: nVMX: Put vmcs12 pages if nested VM-Enter fails due to invalid guest state Put all vmcs12 pages if KVM synthesizes a nested VM-Exit due to invalid guest while emulating VMLAUNCH or VMRESUME. The invalid guest state path doesn't use nested_vmx_vmexit() as that API is intended to be used if and only if L2 is active, and the open coded equivalent neglects to put the vmcs12 pages. Failure to put the vmcs12 pages leaks any pinned pages (and/or mappings) if L1 retries VMLAUNCH/VMRESUME. Note, the !from_vmenter scenario doesn't suffer the same problem, as vmx_get_nested_state_pages() only gets/pins/maps the vmcs12 pages if L2 is active, i.e. if a "full" VM-Exit is guaranteed before KVM will retry getting vmcs12 pages.
INFO
Published Date :
Aug. 8, 2026, 10:16 a.m.
Last Modified :
Aug. 8, 2026, 10:16 a.m.
Remotely Exploit :
No
Source :
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Affected Products
The following products are affected by CVE-2026-68081
vulnerability.
Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the
products
that
are
affected, the information is not represented in the table below.
No affected product recoded yet
Solution
- Update the Linux kernel to the latest patched version.
- Apply the specific patch for KVM nVMX vulnerability.
- Ensure all guest states are handled correctly.
- Verify memory management after update.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth
information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to
CVE-2026-68081.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-68081 is
associated with the following CWEs:
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification
(CAPEC)
stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and
approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2026-68081
weaknesses.
We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).
Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.
The following list is the news that have been mention
CVE-2026-68081 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2026-68081 vulnerability over time.
Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.
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New CVE Received by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Aug. 08, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Affected [{'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '96c66e87deeeb3cc78a3b82a1de8e365eec206c1', 'lessThan': '7996013b85687034d2e820cef94d6404192e3a3d', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '96c66e87deeeb3cc78a3b82a1de8e365eec206c1', 'lessThan': '2c87a087c20632d68920272173b5d7c47f9bcf70', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '96c66e87deeeb3cc78a3b82a1de8e365eec206c1', 'lessThan': '2f2312c422fd2695da772cecb30c69994b795964', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['arch/x86/kvm/vmx/nested.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '5.2'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '5.2', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.18.40', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.18.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.1.5', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '7.1.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.2-rc4', 'versionType': 'original_commit_for_fix', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['arch/x86/kvm/vmx/nested.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] Added Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: KVM: nVMX: Put vmcs12 pages if nested VM-Enter fails due to invalid guest state Put all vmcs12 pages if KVM synthesizes a nested VM-Exit due to invalid guest while emulating VMLAUNCH or VMRESUME. The invalid guest state path doesn't use nested_vmx_vmexit() as that API is intended to be used if and only if L2 is active, and the open coded equivalent neglects to put the vmcs12 pages. Failure to put the vmcs12 pages leaks any pinned pages (and/or mappings) if L1 retries VMLAUNCH/VMRESUME. Note, the !from_vmenter scenario doesn't suffer the same problem, as vmx_get_nested_state_pages() only gets/pins/maps the vmcs12 pages if L2 is active, i.e. if a "full" VM-Exit is guaranteed before KVM will retry getting vmcs12 pages. Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2c87a087c20632d68920272173b5d7c47f9bcf70 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2f2312c422fd2695da772cecb30c69994b795964 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7996013b85687034d2e820cef94d6404192e3a3d