CVE-2026-98273: x86/kprobes: Fix crash when probing CS CALL instructions
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
x86/kprobes: Fix crash when probing CS CALL instructions
When using eBPF to probe CS CALL instructions within a function, a crash can be triggered.
The eBPF tool probes offset 257 of the hrtimerrunqueues() function:
<hrtimerrunqueues+249>: nopl 0x0(%rax,%rax,1) <hrtimerrunqueues+254>: mov %r14,%rdi <hrtimerrunqueues+257>: cs call <x86indirectthunkr12> <hrtimerrunqueues+263>: mov %eax,%r12d <hrtimerrunqueues+266>: xchg %ax,%ax <hrtimerrunqueues+268>: mov %r13,%rdi
Which triggers this crash:
BUG: unable to handle page fault for address: 00000000000f41c9 #PF: supervisor write access in kernel mode #PF: errorcode(0x0002) - not-present page PGD 0 P4D 0 Oops: 0002 [#1] SMP NOPTI CPU: 1 PID: 0 Comm: swapper/1 Kdump: loaded Tainted: P RIP: 0010:hrtimerrunqueues+0x106/0x230
Note that hrtimerrunqueues+0x106 is hrtimerrunqueues+262, which is at the 6th byte of the above CS CALL instruction. Since the CS CALL instruction occupies 6 bytes, the exception occurred in the middle of that call instruction.
The root cause is that when using eBPF tools to probe in the middle of a function, a kprobe with INT3 is used as the underlying implementation.
During single-step emulation of the original CALL instruction, int3emulatecall() assumes that the probed CALL instruction is 5 bytes long. However, the actual CS-prefixed CALL instruction occupies 6 bytes, so it constructs an incorrect exception return address. When the CPU returns from the kprobe handler, the next instruction to be executed is at the address of the last byte of that CS CALL instruction. Coincidentally, starting from that address, the CPU fetches and decodes a completely different instruction, which ultimately triggers a kernel crash.
Fix the issue by using the actual instruction length obtained from the instruction decoder when constructing the exception return address, rather than relying on the hardcoded CALLINSNSIZE macro.
[ mingo: Refined the changelog ]
Affected Software
Remediation
Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.
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linux/Kernelto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 6.18.54 - Upgrade
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linux/Kernelto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.2.8 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-hwe-7.0to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42~24.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-riscv-7.0to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42.1~24.04.1 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linuxto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-awsto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1016.17 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-gcpto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1016.18 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-ibmto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1017.17 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-oem-7.0to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1017.17 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-oracleto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-1015.16 - Upgrade
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ubuntu/linux-riscvto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 7.0.0-42.42.1
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
Which systems are exposed to this crash condition?
The issue applies to the x86 Linux kernel when eBPF is used to probe a CS CALL instruction located within a function. The documented example targets offset 257 in __hrtimer_run_queues().
What is required to trigger the failure?
A probe must be placed on a CS CALL instruction in the middle of a function. The failure occurs because execution can resume at the sixth byte of the six-byte CALL instruction.
How can I recognize this issue in a crash report?
The reported failure is a supervisor-mode kernel page fault, potentially with RIP in __hrtimer_run_queues() at an offset that lands inside the CS CALL instruction. The example shows RIP at __hrtimer_run_queues+0x106, corresponding to offset 262, the sixth byte of the call.