CVE-2026-98551: perf/core: Fill branch entries with a single assignment
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
perf/core: Fill branch entries with a single assignment
perfclearbranchentrybitfields() clears the bitfields of struct perfbranchentry one by one and leaves from/to alone, since callers overwrite those straight away. The list has to be kept in sync with the struct by hand and has already fallen behind: newtype and priv were added to perfbranchentry and never added here.
Only BRBE writes those two, and neither for every record. brbesetperfentrytype() leaves newtype alone for a branch type it does not recognise, and priv is not set for source-only records. armpmuv3.c allocates the per-CPU branch stack with kmalloc(), so such a record reaches userspace with whatever the slot held: uninitialised kmalloc() data on the first pass over the buffer, the previous record's values after that. Nothing under arch/x86/events/ writes either field, so only arm64 is affected.
Assign the whole entry at each site instead. Everything not named is then zero, and there is no list to keep in sync. The bitfields add up to exactly 64 bits, so the struct has no padding to leave undefined.
perfclearbranchentrybitfields() has no callers left, so remove it. perfentryfrombrberegset() assigns an empty literal instead, since it fills from/to conditionally. PERFBRSPECNA is 0, so dropping the explicit spec assignment changes nothing.
Affected Software
Remediation
Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.
- Upgrade
Upgrade
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
Upgrade
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 affected by this issue?
The issue affects arm64 perf branch records associated with BRBE. The description states that no code under arch/x86/events/ writes the affected fields, so x86 is not affected.
When can uninitialised or stale values reach userspace?
This can occur when BRBE produces a record with an unrecognised branch type, leaving new_type unchanged, or a source-only record, where priv is not set. On the first use of a kmalloc()-allocated branch stack, the values can be uninitialised memory; later, they can be values from a previous record.
How does the resolved implementation prevent the disclosure?
It assigns the entire perf_branch_entry at each write site rather than clearing selected bitfields. This zeroes fields that are not explicitly set, including new_type and priv, and the structure has no padding left undefined.