CVE-2026-68172
arm64: make huge_ptep_get handled unaligned addresses
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: arm64: make huge_ptep_get handled unaligned addresses huge_ptep_get() can be handed a virtual address pointing to the middle of a contpmd/contpte mapped hugetlb folio (examples of callers are pagemap_hugetlb_range, page_mapped_in_vma). The arm64 helper rewalks the pgtables in find_num_contig to answer whether the huge pte we have maps a contpmd or a contpte hugetlb folio, and returns CONT_PMDS or CONT_PTES, so that it can collect a/d bits over the contiguous ptes. We can falsely return CONT_PTES instead of CONT_PMDS if the addr is not aligned. On systems where CONT_PTES != CONT_PMDS (meaning page size is 16K), we could collect excess A/D bit state, meaning extra work for the kernel. Even worse, we may iterate beyond the PTE table and dereference a garbage ptep pointer to access physical memory we don't own. Since the ptep pointer is a linear map address, we may run off the end of the linear map or into a hole, dereference a VA not mapped into the kernel pgtables and cause kernel panic. Fix this by aligning the pmdp pointer down to a contpmd base before checking equality with the passed huge pte pointer, to correctly answer whether the huge pte is the base of a contpmd block.
INFO
Published Date :
Aug. 10, 2026, 1:20 p.m.
Last Modified :
Aug. 17, 2026, 5:18 a.m.
Remotely Exploit :
No
Source :
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
CVSS Scores
| Score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability Score | Impact Score | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | HIGH | 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 |
Solution
- Align the pmdp pointer down to a contpmd base.
- Check for equality with the huge pte pointer.
- Update the Linux kernel to the latest version.
- Apply vendor-supplied patches for the kernel.
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-2026-68172.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-68172 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-2026-68172
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-2026-68172 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2026-68172 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.
-
CVE Modified by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Aug. 17, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Changed Affected [{'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '29cb80519689706387bde47000dbb2ed91143063', 'lessThan': '9cd4b1a52eff330798d668c1775f8bc450776280', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '29cb80519689706387bde47000dbb2ed91143063', 'lessThan': 'f3530aec26563f4d483ff31402392961362e9bc6', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '29cb80519689706387bde47000dbb2ed91143063', 'lessThan': 'f73a8edc2ccc6ec72c37d5c578e7592d2e1f9922', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['arch/arm64/mm/hugetlbpage.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '6.16'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '6.16', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.18.42', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.18.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.1.6', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '7.1.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.2-rc5', 'versionType': 'original_commit_for_fix', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['arch/arm64/mm/hugetlbpage.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] [{'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '29cb80519689706387bde47000dbb2ed91143063', 'lessThan': '9cd4b1a52eff330798d668c1775f8bc450776280', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '29cb80519689706387bde47000dbb2ed91143063', 'lessThan': 'f3530aec26563f4d483ff31402392961362e9bc6', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '29cb80519689706387bde47000dbb2ed91143063', 'lessThan': 'f73a8edc2ccc6ec72c37d5c578e7592d2e1f9922', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['arch/arm64/mm/hugetlbpage.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '6.16'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '6.16', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.18.42', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.18.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.1.6', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '7.1.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.2', 'versionType': 'original_commit_for_fix', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['arch/arm64/mm/hugetlbpage.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] -
CVE Modified by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Aug. 13, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added CVSS V3.1 AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H -
New CVE Received by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Aug. 10, 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': '29cb80519689706387bde47000dbb2ed91143063', 'lessThan': '9cd4b1a52eff330798d668c1775f8bc450776280', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '29cb80519689706387bde47000dbb2ed91143063', 'lessThan': 'f3530aec26563f4d483ff31402392961362e9bc6', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '29cb80519689706387bde47000dbb2ed91143063', 'lessThan': 'f73a8edc2ccc6ec72c37d5c578e7592d2e1f9922', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['arch/arm64/mm/hugetlbpage.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '6.16'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '6.16', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.18.42', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.18.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.1.6', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '7.1.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '7.2-rc5', 'versionType': 'original_commit_for_fix', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['arch/arm64/mm/hugetlbpage.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] Added Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: arm64: make huge_ptep_get handled unaligned addresses huge_ptep_get() can be handed a virtual address pointing to the middle of a contpmd/contpte mapped hugetlb folio (examples of callers are pagemap_hugetlb_range, page_mapped_in_vma). The arm64 helper rewalks the pgtables in find_num_contig to answer whether the huge pte we have maps a contpmd or a contpte hugetlb folio, and returns CONT_PMDS or CONT_PTES, so that it can collect a/d bits over the contiguous ptes. We can falsely return CONT_PTES instead of CONT_PMDS if the addr is not aligned. On systems where CONT_PTES != CONT_PMDS (meaning page size is 16K), we could collect excess A/D bit state, meaning extra work for the kernel. Even worse, we may iterate beyond the PTE table and dereference a garbage ptep pointer to access physical memory we don't own. Since the ptep pointer is a linear map address, we may run off the end of the linear map or into a hole, dereference a VA not mapped into the kernel pgtables and cause kernel panic. Fix this by aligning the pmdp pointer down to a contpmd base before checking equality with the passed huge pte pointer, to correctly answer whether the huge pte is the base of a contpmd block. Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9cd4b1a52eff330798d668c1775f8bc450776280 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f3530aec26563f4d483ff31402392961362e9bc6 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f73a8edc2ccc6ec72c37d5c578e7592d2e1f9922