# CVE-2025-71272: most: core: fix resource leak in most_register_interface error paths

> A resource leak in the Linux kernel's MOST driver allows attackers to cause memory exhaustion and denial of service via error paths.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 6 May 2026
- **Updated:** 21 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2025-71272, DEBIAN-CVE-2025-71272, GHSA-hgp5-3fhg-p5cf, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-11-CVE-2025-71272, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-12-CVE-2025-71272, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2204-CVE-2025-71272, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2025-71272, UBUNTU-CVE-2025-71272

## What is CVE-2025-71272?

CVE-2025-71272 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 6 May 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

most: core: fix resource leak in most_register_interface error paths

The function most_register_interface() did not correctly release resources
if it failed early (before registering the device). In these cases, it
returned an error code immediately, leaking the memory allocated for the
interface.

Fix this by initializing the device early via device_initialize() and
calling put_device() on all error paths.

The most_register_interface() is expected to call put_device() on
error which frees the resources allocated in the caller. The
put_device() either calls release_mdev() or dim2_release(),
depending on the caller.

Switch to using device_add() instead of device_register() to handle
the split initialization.

Weakness: CWE-401 (Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-71272?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-71272?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2025-71272 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-71272 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2025-71272 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-71272 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 6 May 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2025-71272 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux kernel. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-71272/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-71272/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-71272
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-71272
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-71272

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-71272/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.