CVE-2026-90336: serial: core: clear freed pointers on uart_register_driver() failure

Severity: unknown
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.2% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: none known
Published: 2026-09-17 · updated 2026-10-30

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: serial: core: clear freed pointers on uart_register_driver() failure uart_register_driver() leaves drv->state pointing to freed memory when tty_alloc_driver() fails. If tty_register_driver() fails, drv->tty_driver also retains a pointer after its reference is dropped. Drivers that use drv->state as an "already registered" flag can then skip registration on the next probe and pass the freed state to uart_add_one_port(). This issue was found with failslab on QEMU's raspi1ap board by failing registration and binding the PL011 port again. Clear both pointers on their failure paths, as uart_unregister_driver() already does.

Affected products

Linux: 2.6.12 — fixed in 7.3

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Linux 7.3. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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