CVE-2026-23425

/* * PoC Concept: Verification of ID Register Initialization State * This kernel module snippet checks if the ID registers are properly * initialized for non-protected pKVM guests vs the flag status. */ #include <linux/module.h> #include <linux/kvm_host.h> static int __init poc_init(void) { struct kvm *kvm; // Simplified representation of the vulnerable check bool flag_set = true; // Simulating KVM_ARCH_FLAG_ID_REGS_INITIALIZED bool data_initialized = false; // Simulating actual id_regs state (vulnerable) printk(KERN_INFO "Checking KVM ID Register State..."); if (flag_set && !data_initialized) { printk(KERN_ALERT "[VULNERABLE] Flag set but ID regs are zero!"); printk(KERN_ALERT "Feature checks (kvm_has_feat) will fail incorrectly."); return 0; } printk(KERN_INFO "ID Registers appear consistent."); return 0; } static void __exit poc_exit(void) { printk(KERN_INFO "PoC unloaded."); } module_init(poc_init); module_exit(poc_exit); MODULE_LICENSE("GPL");

{"cve": {"id": "CVE-2026-23425", "sourceIdentifier": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67", "published": "2026-04-03T14:16:28.747", "lastModified": "2026-04-27T14:16:31.883", "vulnStatus": "Modified", "cveTags": [], "descriptions": [{"lang": "en", "value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nKVM: arm64: Fix ID register initialization for non-protected pKVM guests\n\nIn protected mode, the hypervisor maintains a separate instance of\nthe `kvm` structure for each VM. For non-protected VMs, this structure is\ninitialized from the host's `kvm` state.\n\nCurrently, `pkvm_init_features_from_host()` copies the\n`KVM_ARCH_FLAG_ID_REGS_INITIALIZED` flag from the host without the\nunderlying `id_regs` data being initialized. This results in the\nhypervisor seeing the flag as set while the ID registers remain zeroed.\n\nConsequently, `kvm_has_feat()` checks at EL2 fail (return 0) for\nnon-protected VMs. This breaks logic that relies on feature detection,\nsuch as `ctxt_has_tcrx()` for TCR2_EL1 support. As a result, certain\nsystem registers (e.g., TCR2_EL1, PIR_EL1, POR_EL1) are not\nsaved/restored during the world switch, which could lead to state\ncorruption.\n\nFix this by explicitly copying the ID registers from the host `kvm` to\nthe hypervisor `kvm` for non-protected VMs during initialization, since\nwe trust the host with its non-protected guests' features. Also ensure\n`KVM_ARCH_FLAG_ID_REGS_INITIALIZED` is cleared initially in\n`pkvm_init_features_from_host` so that `vm_copy_id_regs` can properly\ninitialize them and set the flag once done."}], "metrics": {"cvssMetricV31": [{"source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67", "type": "Secondary", "cvssData": {"version": "3.1", "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H", "baseScore": 8.8, "baseSeverity": "HIGH", "attackVector": "LOCAL", "attackComplexity": "LOW", "privilegesRequired": "LOW", "userInteraction": "NONE", "scope": "CHANGED", "confidentialityImpact": "HIGH", "integrityImpact": "HIGH", "availabilityImpact": "HIGH"}, "exploitabilityScore": 2.0, "impactScore": 6.0}, {"source": "[email protected]", "type": "Primary", "cvssData": {"version": "3.1", "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H", "baseScore": 5.5, "baseSeverity": "MEDIUM", "attackVector": "LOCAL", "attackComplexity": "LOW", "privilegesRequired": "LOW", "userInteraction": "NONE", "scope": "UNCHANGED", "confidentialityImpact": "NONE", "integrityImpact": "NONE", "availabilityImpact": "HIGH"}, "exploitabilityScore": 1.8, "impactScore": 3.6}]}, "weaknesses": [{"source": "[email protected]", "type": "Primary", "description": [{"lang": "en", "value": "NVD-CWE-noinfo"}]}], "configurations": [{"nodes": [{"operator": "OR", "negate": false, "cpeMatch": [{"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*", "versionStartIncluding": "6.14.1", "versionEndExcluding": "6.18.17", "matchCriteriaId": "9C726C48-356A-4304-8BC9-6D68C8757131"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*", "versionStartIncluding": "6.19", "versionEndExcluding": "6.19.7", "matchCriteriaId": "69245D10-0B71-485E-80C3-A64F077004D3"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.14:-:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "7DE421BA-0600-4401-A175-73CAB6A6FB4E"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "F253B622-8837-4245-BCE5-A7BF8FC76A16"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "4AE85AD8-4641-4E7C-A2F4-305E2CD9EE64"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "F666C8D8-6538-46D4-B318-87610DE64C34"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "02259FDA-961B-47BC-AE7F-93D7EC6E90C2"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "58A9FEFF-C040-420D-8F0A-BFDAAA1DF258"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "1D2315C0-D46F-4F85-9754-F9E5E11374A6"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc7:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "512EE3A8-A590-4501-9A94-5D4B268D6138"}]}]}], "references": [{"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7e7c2cf0024d89443a7af52e09e47b1fe634ab17", "source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67", "tags": ["Patch"]}, {"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/858620655c1fbff05997e162fc7d83a3293d5142", "source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67", "tags": ["Patch"]}, {"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/bce3847f7c51b86332bf2e554c9e80ca3820f16c", "source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67", "tags": ["Patch"]}]}}