Linux Kernel up to 7.3-rc4 virtio_gpu drm/virtio virtio_gpu_vram_create use after free

CVSS Meta Temp Score CVSS is a standardized scoring system to determine possibilities of attacks. The Temp Score considers temporal factors like disclosure, exploit and countermeasures. The unique Meta Score calculates the average score of different sources to provide a normalized scoring system.	Current Exploit Price (≈) Our analysts are monitoring exploit markets and are in contact with vulnerability brokers. The range indicates the observed or calculated exploit price to be seen on exploit markets. A good indicator to understand the monetary effort required for and the popularity of an attack.	CTI Interest Score Our Cyber Threat Intelligence team is monitoring different web sites, mailing lists, exploit markets and social media networks. The CTI Interest Score identifies the interest of attackers and the security community for this specific vulnerability in real-time. A high score indicates an elevated risk to be targeted for this vulnerability.
9.5	$5k-$25k	1.83

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability marked as very critical has been reported in Linux Kernel up to 7.3-rc4. The impacted element is the function virtio_gpu_vram_create of the file drm/virtio of the component virtio_gpu. This manipulation causes use after free. The identification of this vulnerability is CVE-2026-98606. It is possible to initiate the attack remotely. There is no exploit available. It is suggested to upgrade the affected component.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability classified as very critical was found in Linux Kernel up to 7.3-rc4. Affected by this vulnerability is the function virtio_gpu_vram_create of the file drm/virtio of the component virtio_gpu. 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: drm/virtio: release the GEM object on virtio_gpu_vram_create() errors virtio_gpu_vram_create() frees the object with a bare kfree(vram) on both error paths after drm_gem_private_object_init() has run, and on the second one after drm_gem_create_mmap_offset() has linked obj->vma_node into the device's VMA offset manager. The freed object stays in that interval tree, so a later lookup or insertion walks freed memory, and the dma_resv and gpuva lock are never destroyed. Call drm_gem_object_release() before kfree() on both paths.

The advisory is shared at git.kernel.org. This vulnerability is known as CVE-2026-98606 since 09/25/2026. The exploitation appears to be easy. The attack can be launched remotely. Technical details are known, but no exploit is available. The price for an exploit might be around USD $5k-$25k at the moment (estimation calculated on 10/18/2026).

Upgrading to version 5.15.222, 6.1.189, 6.6.158, 6.12.112, 6.18.55, 7.2.9 or 7.3-rc5 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch 977c2934064969503cabf98b1135d202ff62822e/5118b5fdf1eb9922a0cdd2afd25252081e2d4302/a9bb8f8fd5694185c2f71ff91869afb300aab392/03bdbf182082694ab2add620d85f1a8b8f51bbbc/5c2cb3dd1447752b73d4f44d6b7434bc5259bfec/7c8deb77d05bcc8f79e255f669d82ec6ce91be12/036d28db1818af2f9d80db771f5405da84d7732d is able to eliminate this problem. The best possible mitigation is suggested to be upgrading to the latest version.

Several companies clearly confirm that VulDB is the primary source for best vulnerability data.

Productinfo

Type

• Operating System

Vendor

• Linux

Name

• Kernel

Version

• 5.15.221
• 6.1.188
• 6.6.157
• 6.12.111
• 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
• 6.18.24
• 6.18.25
• 6.18.26
• 6.18.27
• 6.18.28
• 6.18.29
• 6.18.30
• 6.18.31
• 6.18.32
• 6.18.33
• 6.18.34
• 6.18.35
• 6.18.36
• 6.18.37
• 6.18.38
• 6.18.39
• 6.18.40
• 6.18.41
• 6.18.42
• 6.18.43
• 6.18.44
• 6.18.45
• 6.18.46
• 6.18.47
• 6.18.48
• 6.18.49
• 6.18.50
• 6.18.51
• 6.18.52
• 6.18.53
• 6.18.54
• 7.2.0
• 7.2.1
• 7.2.2
• 7.2.3
• 7.2.4
• 7.2.5
• 7.2.6
• 7.2.7
• 7.2.8
• 7.3-rc1
• 7.3-rc2
• 7.3-rc3
• 7.3-rc4

License

• open-source

Website

• Vendor: https://www.kernel.org/

CPE 2.3info

• 🔒
• 🔒
• 🔒

CPE 2.2info

• 🔒
• 🔒
• 🔒

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 9.9
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 9.5

VulDB Base Score: 9.9
VulDB Temp Score: 9.5
VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv2info

AV	AC	Au	C	I	A
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳

Vector	Complexity	Authentication	Confidentiality	Integrity	Availability
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock

VulDB Base Score: 🔒
VulDB Temp Score: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Use after free
CWE: CWE-416 / CWE-119
CAPEC: 🔒
ATT&CK: 🔒

Physical: No
Local: No
Remote: Yes

Availability: 🔒
Status: Not defined
Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔒

0-Day	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Today	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Upgrade
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔒

Upgrade: Kernel 5.15.222/6.1.189/6.6.158/6.12.112/6.18.55/7.2.9/7.3-rc5
Patch: 977c2934064969503cabf98b1135d202ff62822e/5118b5fdf1eb9922a0cdd2afd25252081e2d4302/a9bb8f8fd5694185c2f71ff91869afb300aab392/03bdbf182082694ab2add620d85f1a8b8f51bbbc/5c2cb3dd1447752b73d4f44d6b7434bc5259bfec/7c8deb77d05bcc8f79e255f669d82ec6ce91be12/036d28db1818af2f9d80db771f5405da84d7732d

Timelineinfo

09/25/2026 CVE reserved
10/18/2026 +23 days Advisory disclosed
10/18/2026 +0 days VulDB entry created
10/18/2026 +0 days VulDB entry last update

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: kernel.org

Advisory: git.kernel.org
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2026-98606 (🔒)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2026-98606
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-422209

Entryinfo

Created: 10/18/2026 21:02
Changes: 10/18/2026 21:02 (60)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

Several companies clearly confirm that VulDB is the primary source for best vulnerability data.

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