0.0
NA
CVE-2026-72240
mfd: sm501: Fix reference leak on failed device registration
Overview
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mfd: sm501: Fix reference leak on failed device registration When platform_device_register() fails in sm501_register_device(), the embedded struct device in pdev has already been initialized by device_initialize(), but the failure path only reports the error and returns without dropping the device reference for the current platform device: sm501_register_device() -> platform_device_register(pdev) -> device_initialize(&pdev->dev) -> setup_pdev_dma_masks(pdev) -> platform_device_add(pdev) This leads to a reference leak when platform_device_register() fails. Fix this by calling platform_device_put() before returning the error. The issue was identified by a static analysis tool I developed and confirmed by manual review.
Details
INFO
Published Date :
Aug. 15, 2026, 6:21 a.m.
Last Modified :
Aug. 17, 2026, 6:18 a.m.
Remotely Exploit :
No
Source :
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Solution
Fix a reference leak in device registration by putting the device before returning an error.
- Call platform_device_put() before returning error.
- Apply the patch to the Linux kernel.
- Update the Linux kernel.
References
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CVE-2026-72240.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-72240 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-2026-72240
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).
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The following list is the news that have been mention
CVE-2026-72240 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2026-72240 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': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': 'bbb1ecaed4ed7680e63d3a0f143f03de32de5d6e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': 'e2dac91380a10e9e8d5883fb73ce9d9b390a629c', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '0baf9d43a7b7b43df2900bd8656e75b725028b6e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': 'a3e340d506c1036a747fb0972aebf1063f7ef30e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '760a1029692f1d788dc11aa636a3bf432e58b240', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '16a42c88c4667fa0bd944e438a667e059551f1f1', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '2ff8156fd500d54c61430b6834137fd0a07047ce', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '8c2f0b42fc252e1bf1c7746447091a468e784ca1', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/mfd/sm501.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '2.6.21'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '2.6.21', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '5.10.261', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '5.10.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '5.15.212', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '5.15.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.1.178', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.1.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.6.145', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.6.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.12.97', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.12.*'}, {'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-rc1', 'versionType': 'original_commit_for_fix', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/mfd/sm501.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] [{'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': 'bbb1ecaed4ed7680e63d3a0f143f03de32de5d6e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': 'e2dac91380a10e9e8d5883fb73ce9d9b390a629c', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '0baf9d43a7b7b43df2900bd8656e75b725028b6e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': 'a3e340d506c1036a747fb0972aebf1063f7ef30e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '760a1029692f1d788dc11aa636a3bf432e58b240', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '16a42c88c4667fa0bd944e438a667e059551f1f1', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '2ff8156fd500d54c61430b6834137fd0a07047ce', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '8c2f0b42fc252e1bf1c7746447091a468e784ca1', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/mfd/sm501.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '2.6.21'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '2.6.21', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '5.10.261', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '5.10.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '5.15.212', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '5.15.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.1.178', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.1.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.6.145', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.6.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.12.97', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.12.*'}, {'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', 'versionType': 'original_commit_for_fix', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/mfd/sm501.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] -
New CVE Received by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Aug. 15, 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': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': 'bbb1ecaed4ed7680e63d3a0f143f03de32de5d6e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': 'e2dac91380a10e9e8d5883fb73ce9d9b390a629c', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '0baf9d43a7b7b43df2900bd8656e75b725028b6e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': 'a3e340d506c1036a747fb0972aebf1063f7ef30e', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '760a1029692f1d788dc11aa636a3bf432e58b240', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '16a42c88c4667fa0bd944e438a667e059551f1f1', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '2ff8156fd500d54c61430b6834137fd0a07047ce', 'versionType': 'git'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': 'b6d6454fdb66f3829af8b92ab06825b6060fdf7e', 'lessThan': '8c2f0b42fc252e1bf1c7746447091a468e784ca1', 'versionType': 'git'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/mfd/sm501.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}, {'repo': 'https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git', 'vendor': 'Linux', 'product': 'Linux', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '2.6.21'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '2.6.21', 'versionType': 'semver'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '5.10.261', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '5.10.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '5.15.212', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '5.15.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.1.178', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.1.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.6.145', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.6.*'}, {'status': 'unaffected', 'version': '6.12.97', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '6.12.*'}, {'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-rc1', 'versionType': 'original_commit_for_fix', 'lessThanOrEqual': '*'}], 'programFiles': ['drivers/mfd/sm501.c'], 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] Added Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mfd: sm501: Fix reference leak on failed device registration When platform_device_register() fails in sm501_register_device(), the embedded struct device in pdev has already been initialized by device_initialize(), but the failure path only reports the error and returns without dropping the device reference for the current platform device: sm501_register_device() -> platform_device_register(pdev) -> device_initialize(&pdev->dev) -> setup_pdev_dma_masks(pdev) -> platform_device_add(pdev) This leads to a reference leak when platform_device_register() fails. Fix this by calling platform_device_put() before returning the error. The issue was identified by a static analysis tool I developed and confirmed by manual review. Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0baf9d43a7b7b43df2900bd8656e75b725028b6e Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/16a42c88c4667fa0bd944e438a667e059551f1f1 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2ff8156fd500d54c61430b6834137fd0a07047ce Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/760a1029692f1d788dc11aa636a3bf432e58b240 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8c2f0b42fc252e1bf1c7746447091a468e784ca1 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a3e340d506c1036a747fb0972aebf1063f7ef30e Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/bbb1ecaed4ed7680e63d3a0f143f03de32de5d6e Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e2dac91380a10e9e8d5883fb73ce9d9b390a629c
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity
being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS
score history of the vulnerability.