# CVE-2026-98608: drm/virtio: fix object leak in virtio_gpu_resource_create_ioctl()

> A local attacker can trigger a memory leak in the virtio GPU driver, leading to resource exhaustion and potential denial of service.

- **Severity:** Not scored
- **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:** 18 Oct 2026
- **Updated:** 19 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-109049, BELL-CVE-2026-98608, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98608, GHSA-hvjw-8jwh-8qj9, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-98608

## What is CVE-2026-98608?

CVE-2026-98608 is a denial of service vulnerability in Linux, published on 18 Oct 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:

drm/virtio: fix object leak in virtio_gpu_resource_create_ioctl()

virtio_gpu_resource_create_ioctl() calls drm_gem_object_release() on the
drm_gem_handle_create() error path instead of dropping the reference it
owns, so obj->funcs->free() never runs and the virtio_gpu_object, its
pages and sg table, the resource id and the host-side resource are
leaked.

Use drm_gem_object_put() instead.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-98608?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-98608?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-98608 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-98608 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-98608 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-98608 is a denial of service vulnerability in Linux, published on 18 Oct 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-2026-98608 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-2026-98608/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98608/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-98608
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98608
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-98608

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98608/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.