Vulnerability Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: cpufreq: intel_pstate: Fix NULL pointer dereference in update_cpu_qos_request() The update_cpu_qos_request() function attempts to initialize the 'freq' variable by dereferencing 'cpudata' before verifying if the 'policy' is valid. This issue occurs on systems booted with the "nosmt" parameter, where all_cpu_data[cpu] is NULL for the SMT sibling threads. As a result, any call to update_qos_requests() will result in a NULL pointer dereference as the code will attempt to access pstate.turbo_freq using the NULL cpudata pointer. Also, pstate.turbo_freq may be updated by intel_pstate_get_hwp_cap() after initializing the 'freq' variable, so it is better to defer the 'freq' until intel_pstate_get_hwp_cap() has been called. Fix this by deferring the 'freq' assignment until after the policy and driver_data have been validated. [ rjw: Added one paragraph to the changelog ]
CVSS Score
MEDIUM
Affected Products
| Vendor | Product | Versions |
|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux Kernel | >= 6.18, < 6.18.19 |
Related Weaknesses (CWE)
References
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/42738dffb7b0766a45882dff7989401d78f66f92Patch
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6bfda7ce56e7d14a677b7bcd6c7a5009cc29aa88Patch
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ab39cc4cb8ceecdc2b61747433e7237f1ac2b789Patch
FAQ
What is CVE-2026-43401?
CVE-2026-43401 is a vulnerability with a CVSS score of 5.5 (MEDIUM). In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: cpufreq: intel_pstate: Fix NULL pointer dereference in update_cpu_qos_request() The update_cpu_qos_request() function attempts to ...
How severe is CVE-2026-43401?
CVE-2026-43401 has been rated MEDIUM with a CVSS base score of 5.5/10. Review the CVSS metrics above for detailed severity breakdown.
Is there a patch for CVE-2026-43401?
Check the references section above for vendor advisories and patch information. Affected products include: Linux Linux Kernel.