CVE-2026-68213

What the bug is

The vb2 framework hands buffers to the driver via buf_queue() before calling start_streaming(). If start_streaming() returns an error without first returning those buffers via vb2_buffer_done(), vb2_start_streaming() fires WARN_ON(owned_by_drv_count) and the queued buffers leak. rtl2832_sdr_start_streaming() had multiple error paths that hit this trap: two direct early returns (-ENODEV, -ERESTARTSYS), plus six `goto err` paths covering subdev s_power, tuner setup, ADC setup, stream-buffer allocation, urb allocation, and urb submission failures. None of them returned the queued buffers. The original function had no distinct success exit and fell straight through into the err label, which previously only did mutex_unlock and "return ret". Adding queued-buffer cleanup at err must therefore be paired with an explicit success return; otherwise every successful start would also drain the buffer queue and kill streaming. Add that success return, then add rtl2832_sdr_cleanup_queued_bufs() at the err label and before each early return. The cleanup helper takes a vb2_buffer_state argument so that the start_streaming error paths can pass VB2_BUF_STATE_QUEUED (as expected by userspace on start_streaming failure) while stop_streaming keeps its existing VB2_BUF_STATE_ERROR semantics. This mirrors the uvcvideo fix in commit 4cf3b6fd54eb ("media: uvcvideo: Return queued buffers on start_streaming() failure"). The err label still does not roll back power_ctrl(), frontend_ctrl(), the POWER_ON flag, or stream/URB allocations that may have happened before the failing step. Those are pre-existing leaks of a different class and are not addressed here.

Where it lives

The fix touches these files. If the subsystem is one you do not use, the practical exposure is lower, though the package is still the vulnerable one.

drivers/media/dvb-frontends/rtl2832_sdr.c

What this is

RTL2832_SDR MEDIA DRIVERMAINTAINERS section matched on drivers/media/dvb-frontends/rtl2832_sdr* · linux-media@vger.kernel.org · Orphan

Kernel module

rtl2832_sdr

Check it on the machine

grep -wE 'CONFIG_DVB_CORE|CONFIG_DVB_RTL2832_SDR' /boot/config-$(uname -r)

Reads the booted kernel's own configuration, on the machine and nowhere else. =y is built in, =m is a module, and an is not set line means the code is not there.

lsmod | grep -w rtl2832_sdr

Prints a line if that module is loaded right now, and nothing if it is not. One that is not loaded can still be loaded later by anything that needs it.

Show whether Debian builds this, per release

Debian builds this, but not on every flavour. At least one release below builds the code on some of its kernel flavours and not on others, so the answer depends on the architecture and flavour installed.

• bookworm, trixie, forky, sid, bookworm · linux-6.12Mnot built on amd64/cloud-amd64, arm64/cloud-arm64

M

a module where it is built at all; some flavours do not build it

Build switches

CONFIG_DVB_CORE, CONFIG_DVB_RTL2832_SDR

Reads as

all on means the file is compiled; any one off means it is not.

From the configuration Debian publishes for every kernel flavour it builds. It covers only the architectures Debian ships a linux-config package for, and nothing about a kernel you built yourself. Debian's own status above stays authoritative about the source package.MAINTAINERS kbuild Makefiles Debian linux-config packages

Signals

Published

2026-08-10 (2 months ago)source

CVSS

7.8 high
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:Hsource recompute it

Attack vector

local (AV:L)source

EPSS

0.18%, higher than 6.7% of all CVEssource

CISA KEV

not listedthe KEV catalogue

Debian urgency

not yet assignedsource

Subsystem

drivers/media

Upstream fixes

The versions the CNA records as introducing and fixing this, and the commit for each. source

Introduced	Fixed in	Commit
3.15	5.10.265	fd1e11fc3849
3.15	5.15.216	772f2550fe32
3.15	6.1.183	a248273f8af6
3.15	6.6.148	465dc8e71d2d
3.15	6.12.101	0b08c0403cf6
3.15	6.18.42	894e83509c66
3.15	7.1.6	fc0b18782aab
3.15	7.2	33ca0aab6f4b

Debian advisories