CVE-2026-31528: perf: Make sure to use pmu_ctx->pmu for groups

Severity: high (CVSS 7.8 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.1% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: none known
Published: 2026-04-22 · updated 2026-10-19
Weakness: CWE-125

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: perf: Make sure to use pmu_ctx->pmu for groups Oliver reported that x86_pmu_del() ended up doing an out-of-bound memory access when group_sched_in() fails and needs to roll back. This *should* be handled by the transaction callbacks, but he found that when the group leader is a software event, the transaction handlers of the wrong PMU are used. Despite the move_group case in perf_event_open() and group_sched_in() using pmu_ctx->pmu. Turns out, inherit uses event->pmu to clone the events, effectively undoing the move_group case for all inherited contexts. Fix this by also making inherit use pmu_ctx->pmu, ensuring all inherited counters end up in the same pmu context. Similarly, __perf_event_read() should use equally use pmu_ctx->pmu for the group case.

Affected products

Linux kernel: from 6.2 before 6.6.131; from 6.7 before 6.12.80; from 6.13 before 6.18.21; from 6.19 before 6.19.11; 7.0-rc1, 7.0-rc2, 7.0-rc3, 7.0-rc4 — fixed in 6.12.80, 6.18.21, 6.19.11, 6.6.131

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Linux kernel 6.12.80, 6.18.21, 6.19.11, 6.6.131. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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