UBUNTU-CVE-2026-90207: Null Pointer Dereference
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ALSA: seq: midi: Serialize input teardown with eventinput sndmidiinputevent() must not be running while a rawmidi substream is closing, since this can lead to the trigger state becoming out-of-step through this sequence in sndrawmidiinputtrigger(): sndrawmidiinputtrigger(up=0) sndmidiinputevent() -> sndrawmidikernelread() -> sndrawmidiinputtrigger(up=1) -> cancelworksync() which ends with the underlying device being active unexpectedly. When this is called from closesubstream(), further input can re-trigger the input event leaving it running after rawmidireleasepriv() has set rfile->rmidi to NULL which leads to: Unable to handle kernel NULL pointer dereference at virtual address 00000000000000b0 Call trace: sndmidiinputevent+0x3c/0x134 [sndseqmidi] (P) sndrawmidiinputeventwork+0x1c/0x2c processonework+0x150/0x3a4 workerthread+0x190/0x318 Apply a similar approach to commit ef7607ab1c8ad ("ALSA: seq: midi: Serialize output teardown with eventinput") which fixed the same issue in the output direction, but updated to use RCU following Takashi Iwai's proposed follow-on patch [1]. With this change in place, midisynthunsubscribe() clears the input file so sndmidiinputevent() will not re-trigger the stream and will be quiesced by the cancelworksync() in sndrawmidiinputtrigger(). [1] https://lore.kernel.org/linux-sound/20260813144224.753399-1-tiwai@suse.de/
Affected Software
Remediation
Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.
- 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 - Upgrade
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Linux kernel ALSA sequencer MIDIto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Patch ef7607ab1c8ad
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Ubuntu kernel packages are listed as affected?
The listed packages are ubuntu/linux, ubuntu/linux-fips, ubuntu/linux-aws, ubuntu/linux-azure, ubuntu/linux-aws-fips, ubuntu/linux-azure-fips, ubuntu/linux-gcp, and ubuntu/linux-gcp-fips.
What does an attacker need to trigger the issue?
The CVSS vector indicates local access and low privileges are required, with no user interaction. The triggering condition involves MIDI input activity racing with closure of an ALSA rawmidi substream.
What is the expected impact if the race is triggered?
The issue can cause a kernel NULL pointer dereference in snd_midi_input_event after the rawmidi state has been cleared. The availability impact is rated high, and a call trace may include snd_midi_input_event, snd_rawmidi_input_event_work, process_one_work, and worker_thread.