Linux Kernel up to 6.12.82/6.18.23/6.19.13/7.0.0 hwmon powerz_disconnect use after free

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability has been found in Linux Kernel up to 6.12.82/6.18.23/6.19.13/7.0.0 and classified as critical. This affects the function powerz_disconnect of the component hwmon. This manipulation causes use after free. This vulnerability appears as CVE-2026-31582. There is no available exploit. The affected component should be upgraded.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability has been found in Linux Kernel up to 6.12.82/6.18.23/6.19.13/7.0.0 and classified as critical. Affected by this vulnerability is the function powerz_disconnect of the component hwmon. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a use after free vulnerability. The CWE definition for the vulnerability is CWE-416. Referencing memory after it has been freed can cause a program to crash, use unexpected values, or execute code. As an impact it is known to affect confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: hwmon: (powerz) Fix use-after-free on USB disconnect After powerz_disconnect() frees the URB and releases the mutex, a subsequent powerz_read() call can acquire the mutex and call powerz_read_data(), which dereferences the freed URB pointer. Fix by: - Setting priv->urb to NULL in powerz_disconnect() so that powerz_read_data() can detect the disconnected state. - Adding a !priv->urb check at the start of powerz_read_data() to return -ENODEV on a disconnected device. - Moving usb_set_intfdata() before hwmon registration so the disconnect handler can always find the priv pointer.

It is possible to read the advisory at git.kernel.org. This vulnerability is known as CVE-2026-31582 since 03/09/2026. The exploitation appears to be easy. Technical details of the vulnerability are known, but there is no available exploit. The pricing for an exploit might be around USD $0-$5k at the moment (estimation calculated on 05/26/2026).

The vulnerability scanner Nessus provides a plugin with the ID 310315 (Linux Distros Unpatched Vulnerability : CVE-2026-31582), which helps to determine the existence of the flaw in a target environment.

Upgrading to version 6.12.83, 6.18.24, 6.19.14 or 7.0.1 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch c78e1d4e48f23792adaa7c94251e22b0d9700a39/9e1b798257f96d2e2a2639830eb71add545ce749/7003ae4810ca83f0ddca85b768500e313c4b998c/61f2aa23b0ce8d7aa5071ed25a7471e246a4fdd4 is able to eliminate this problem. The bugfix is ready for download at git.kernel.org. The best possible mitigation is suggested to be upgrading to the latest version.

The vulnerability is also documented in the databases at Tenable (310315) and CERT Bund (WID-SEC-2026-1279). Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.

Affected

• Google Container-Optimized OS
• Debian Linux
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux
• Oracle Linux
• Open Source Linux Kernel

Productinfo

Type

• Operating System

Vendor

• Linux

Name

• Kernel

Version

• 6.12.0
• 6.12.1
• 6.12.2
• 6.12.3
• 6.12.4
• 6.12.5
• 6.12.6
• 6.12.7
• 6.12.8
• 6.12.9
• 6.12.10
• 6.12.11
• 6.12.12
• 6.12.13
• 6.12.14
• 6.12.15
• 6.12.16
• 6.12.17
• 6.12.18
• 6.12.19
• 6.12.20
• 6.12.21
• 6.12.22
• 6.12.23
• 6.12.24
• 6.12.25
• 6.12.26
• 6.12.27
• 6.12.28
• 6.12.29
• 6.12.30
• 6.12.31
• 6.12.32
• 6.12.33
• 6.12.34
• 6.12.35
• 6.12.36
• 6.12.37
• 6.12.38
• 6.12.39
• 6.12.40
• 6.12.41
• 6.12.42
• 6.12.43
• 6.12.44
• 6.12.45
• 6.12.46
• 6.12.47
• 6.12.48
• 6.12.49
• 6.12.50
• 6.12.51
• 6.12.52
• 6.12.53
• 6.12.54
• 6.12.55
• 6.12.56
• 6.12.57
• 6.12.58
• 6.12.59
• 6.12.60
• 6.12.61
• 6.12.62
• 6.12.63
• 6.12.64
• 6.12.65
• 6.12.66
• 6.12.67
• 6.12.68
• 6.12.69
• 6.12.70
• 6.12.71
• 6.12.72
• 6.12.73
• 6.12.74
• 6.12.75
• 6.12.76
• 6.12.77
• 6.12.78
• 6.12.79
• 6.12.80
• 6.12.81
• 6.12.82
• 6.18.0
• 6.18.1
• 6.18.2
• 6.18.3
• 6.18.4
• 6.18.5
• 6.18.6
• 6.18.7
• 6.18.8
• 6.18.9
• 6.18.10
• 6.18.11
• 6.18.12
• 6.18.13
• 6.18.14
• 6.18.15
• 6.18.16
• 6.18.17
• 6.18.18
• 6.18.19
• 6.18.20
• 6.18.21
• 6.18.22
• 6.18.23
• 6.19.0
• 6.19.1
• 6.19.2
• 6.19.3
• 6.19.4
• 6.19.5
• 6.19.6
• 6.19.7
• 6.19.8
• 6.19.9
• 6.19.10
• 6.19.11
• 6.19.12
• 6.19.13
• 7.0

License

• open-source

Website

• Vendor: https://www.kernel.org/

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Entryinfo

Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.

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