CVE-2026-68357
watchdog: pretimeout: Fix UAF in watchdog_unregister_governor()
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: watchdog: pretimeout: Fix UAF in watchdog_unregister_governor() When a watchdog governor is unregistered, it updates existing watchdog devices that were using this governor by falling back to `default_gov`. If the governor being unregistered is currently set as `default_gov`, the `default_gov` is never cleared. This leads to 2 use-after-free issues: 1. New watchdog devices registered after this point will inherit the dangling `default_gov`. 2. Existing watchdog devices using the unregistered governor will have their `wdd->gov` reassigned to the dangling `default_gov`. Fix the UAF by clearing `default_gov` if it matches the governor being unregistered.
INFO
Published Date :
Aug. 10, 2026, 1:20 p.m.
Last Modified :
Aug. 17, 2026, 6:17 a.m.
Remotely Exploit :
No
Source :
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Solution
- Apply the kernel patch to fix watchdog governor handling.
- Clear the default governor if it matches the unregistered one.
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-2026-68357.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-68357 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-2026-68357
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-2026-68357 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2026-68357 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': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '2e47b91b9b4020fcc01def14d6b6556d66074cf4', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '0ca252720f0e38411cfec3431db9bb1aed0a412c', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '7d1658b066de30f4b23afc14814d22416a971e6e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '7993d626983cc58fbde9607333cfd2d57725c197', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '7362ba0f9c96ac3ad6a2ca3995bd9fc9a28a8661', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/watchdog/watchdog_pretimeout.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '4.9'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '4.9', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.6.148', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.6.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.12.101', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.12.*'}, {'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': ['drivers/watchdog/watchdog_pretimeout.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] [{'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '2e47b91b9b4020fcc01def14d6b6556d66074cf4', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '0ca252720f0e38411cfec3431db9bb1aed0a412c', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '7d1658b066de30f4b23afc14814d22416a971e6e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '7993d626983cc58fbde9607333cfd2d57725c197', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '7362ba0f9c96ac3ad6a2ca3995bd9fc9a28a8661', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/watchdog/watchdog_pretimeout.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '4.9'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '4.9', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.6.148', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.6.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.12.101', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.12.*'}, {'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': ['drivers/watchdog/watchdog_pretimeout.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] -
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': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '2e47b91b9b4020fcc01def14d6b6556d66074cf4', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '0ca252720f0e38411cfec3431db9bb1aed0a412c', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '7d1658b066de30f4b23afc14814d22416a971e6e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '7993d626983cc58fbde9607333cfd2d57725c197', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'da0d12ff2b829a35e9921918e925d79497b82bef', 'lessThan': '7362ba0f9c96ac3ad6a2ca3995bd9fc9a28a8661', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/watchdog/watchdog_pretimeout.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '4.9'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '4.9', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.6.148', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.6.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.12.101', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.12.*'}, {'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': ['drivers/watchdog/watchdog_pretimeout.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] Added Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: watchdog: pretimeout: Fix UAF in watchdog_unregister_governor() When a watchdog governor is unregistered, it updates existing watchdog devices that were using this governor by falling back to `default_gov`. If the governor being unregistered is currently set as `default_gov`, the `default_gov` is never cleared. This leads to 2 use-after-free issues: 1. New watchdog devices registered after this point will inherit the dangling `default_gov`. 2. Existing watchdog devices using the unregistered governor will have their `wdd->gov` reassigned to the dangling `default_gov`. Fix the UAF by clearing `default_gov` if it matches the governor being unregistered. Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0ca252720f0e38411cfec3431db9bb1aed0a412c Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2e47b91b9b4020fcc01def14d6b6556d66074cf4 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7362ba0f9c96ac3ad6a2ca3995bd9fc9a28a8661 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7993d626983cc58fbde9607333cfd2d57725c197 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7d1658b066de30f4b23afc14814d22416a971e6e