CVE-2026-43488 usb: xhci: Prevent interrupt storm on host controller error (HCE)
An attacker with physical access can trigger a Host Controller Error in the xHCI driver, causing an interrupt storm that leads to system-level faults and denial of service.
- 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
What is CVE-2026-43488?
CVE-2026-43488 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 13 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:
usb: xhci: Prevent interrupt storm on host controller error (HCE)
The xHCI controller reports a Host Controller Error (HCE) in UAS Storage Device plug/unplug scenarios on Android devices. HCE is checked in xhci_irq() function and causes an interrupt storm (since the interrupt isn’t cleared), leading to severe system-level faults.
When the xHC controller reports HCE in the interrupt handler, the driver only logs a warning and assumes xHC activity will stop as stated in xHCI specification. An interrupt storm does however continue on some hosts even after HCE, and only ceases after manually disabling xHC interrupt and stopping the controller by calling xhci_halt().
Add xhci_halt() to xhci_irq() function where STS_HCE status is checked, mirroring the existing error handling pattern used for STS_FATAL errors.
This only fixes the interrupt storm. Proper HCE recovery requires resetting and re-initializing the xHC.
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-43488?
It affects 1 product.
Products include Linux kernel.
How do I fix CVE-2026-43488?
Apply the vendor's patch.
Upgrade, then put limits on request size, rate and nesting depth so one client cannot exhaust the service. More about Denial of service.
Is CVE-2026-43488 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-43488 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel
Sources
Also known as BELL-CVE-2026-43488, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-43488, GHSA-5x4m-q4p4-96j6, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2204-CVE-2026-43488, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2026-43488, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-43488.