# CVE-2026-68461: device property: initialize the remaining fields of fwnode_handle in fwnode_init()

> An attacker can cause a kernel crash by triggering a dereference of uninitialized memory in the Linux kernel's device property handling.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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:** 15 Aug 2026
- **Updated:** 19 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2026-68461, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-68461, GHSA-f2v8-v28c-j8h9, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-68461

## What is CVE-2026-68461?

CVE-2026-68461 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux, published on 15 Aug 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:

device property: initialize the remaining fields of fwnode_handle in fwnode_init()

If a firmware node is allocated on the stack (for instance: temporary
software node whose life-time we control) or on the heap - but using a
non-zeroing allocation function - and initialized using fwnode_init(),
its secondary pointer will contain uninitialized memory which likely
will be neither NULL nor IS_ERR() and so may end up being dereferenced
(for example: in dev_to_swnode()). Set fwnode->secondary to NULL on
initialization. While at it: initialize the remaining fields of struct
fwnode_handle too just to be sure.

[ Fix typo in commit message. - Danilo ]

Weakness: CWE-665 (Improper Initialization)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-68461?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-68461?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-68461 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-68461 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-68461 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-68461 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux, published on 15 Aug 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-2026-68461 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux. 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-2026-68461/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-68461/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-68461
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-68461
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-68461

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-68461/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.