CVE-2026-97481
serial: 8250: fix possible ISR soft lockup
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: serial: 8250: fix possible ISR soft lockup There are rare cases in which the host gets stuck in the ISR because it is flooded with messages during the startup phase. The reason for the soft lockup in the ISR is the missing FIFO error IRQ (FIFOE) handling. Not handling it and reporting IRQ_HANDLED triggers the IRQ immediately again. Fix this by adding a check for the FIFOE status and clearing the FIFO if no data is ready (DR). This behavior was observed on an AM62L device which uses the OMAP 8250 driver. Fix it for all 8250 drivers, since the OMAP driver's special IRQ setup handling may trigger this behavior more frequently, but it is not ensured that other 8250 drivers aren't affected.
INFO
Published Date :
Sept. 24, 2026, 5:17 p.m.
Last Modified :
Sept. 24, 2026, 5:17 p.m.
Remotely Exploit :
No
Source :
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Solution
- Apply the kernel patch that handles FIFO error IRQ.
- Ensure FIFO error interrupts are properly managed.
- Clear the FIFO if no data is ready.
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-2026-97481.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-97481 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-2026-97481
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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CVE-2026-97481 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
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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
Sep. 24, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: serial: 8250: fix possible ISR soft lockup There are rare cases in which the host gets stuck in the ISR because it is flooded with messages during the startup phase. The reason for the soft lockup in the ISR is the missing FIFO error IRQ (FIFOE) handling. Not handling it and reporting IRQ_HANDLED triggers the IRQ immediately again. Fix this by adding a check for the FIFOE status and clearing the FIFO if no data is ready (DR). This behavior was observed on an AM62L device which uses the OMAP 8250 driver. Fix it for all 8250 drivers, since the OMAP driver's special IRQ setup handling may trigger this behavior more frequently, but it is not ensured that other 8250 drivers aren't affected. Added Affected New affected value received. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/97xxx/CVE-2026-97481.json">CVE-2026-97481</a> Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0c6bf45e5a345cc3b9ffbeaf9083ecac3c2293eb Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2881b2e6da02daea1eb8254247ba8fd20c9d3348 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4295c58990b7a84e8349a2226db692e252825b60