CVE-2026-80677 driver core: use READ_ONCE() for dev->driver in dev_has_sync_state()
A race condition in the Linux kernel driver core allows concurrent unbinding to cause a null pointer dereference, potentially leading to a system crash.
- 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-2026-80677?
CVE-2026-80677 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux, published on 28 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:
driver core: use READ_ONCE() for dev->driver in dev_has_sync_state()
dev_has_sync_state() reads dev->driver twice without holding device_lock() -- once for the NULL check and once to dereference ->sync_state. Some callers only hold device_links_write_lock, which doesn't prevent a concurrent unbind from clearing dev->driver via device_unbind_cleanup().
Fix it by reading dev->driver exactly once with READ_ONCE(), pairing with the WRITE_ONCE() in device_set_driver().
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-80677?
How do I fix CVE-2026-80677?
Apply the vendor's patch.
Is CVE-2026-80677 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-80677 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as BELL-CVE-2026-80677, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-80677, GHSA-jprm-rcxh-4jgp, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-80677.