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CVE-2026-72261
ASoC: SOF: ipc3-control: Validate size in snd_sof_update_control
Published 2026-08-15 (2 months ago) by the Linux kernel CNA. Subsystem sound/soc. Debian urgency: not yet assigned.
What to do, per Debian release
Debian's own status for CVE-2026-72261 in every release this site tracks, and what each one means in practice. Every status below is the one the Debian Security Team publishes for this CVE. source
| Release | Status | Version | What this means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 12bookworm | fixed | 6.1.180-1 | Update the kernel and reboot. Fixed in 6.1.180-1. A running kernel keeps the old code until the machine restarts. |
| Debian 13trixie | fixed | 6.12.100-1 | Update the kernel and reboot. Fixed in 6.12.100-1. A running kernel keeps the old code until the machine restarts. |
| Debian 14forky | fixed | 7.1.5-1 | Update the kernel and reboot. Fixed in 7.1.5-1. A running kernel keeps the old code until the machine restarts. |
| Debian unstablesid | fixed | 7.1.5-1 | Update the kernel and reboot. Fixed in 7.1.5-1. A running kernel keeps the old code until the machine restarts. |
The vulnerability
What the bug is
In snd_sof_update_control(), firmware-provided cdata->num_elems is checked against local_cdata->data->size but never against the actual allocation size. If local_cdata->data->size was previously set to an inconsistent value, the memcpy could write past the allocated buffer. Add a bounds check to ensure num_elems fits within the available space in the ipc_control_data allocation before copying.
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.
sound/soc/sof/ipc3-control.c
- What this is
- SOUND - SOUND OPEN FIRMWARE (SOF) DRIVERSMAINTAINERS section matched on sound/soc/sof/ · sound-open-firmware@alsa-project.org · Supported
- Kernel module
- snd_sof
Check it on the machine
grep -wE 'CONFIG_SND|CONFIG_SND_SOC|CONFIG_SND_SOC_SOF' /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 snd_sofPrints 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.
- bookwormMnot built on amd64/cloud-amd64, arm64/arm64, arm64/cloud-arm64, arm64/rt/arm64, armhf/armmp, armhf/armmp-lpae, armhf/rt/armmp, ppc64el/powerpc64le
- trixieMnot built on amd64/cloud-amd64, arm64/cloud-arm64, armel/rpi, armhf/armmp, armhf/armmp-lpae, armhf/rt/armmp, ppc64el/powerpc64le, ppc64el/powerpc64le-64k, riscv64/riscv64, s390x/s390x
- forky, sidMnot built on amd64/cloud-amd64, arm64/cloud-arm64, armhf/armmp, armhf/armmp-lpae, loong64/loong64, ppc64el/powerpc64le, ppc64el/powerpc64le-64k, riscv64/riscv64, s390x/s390x
- M
- a module where it is built at all; some flavours do not build it
- Build switches
- CONFIG_SND, CONFIG_SND_SOC, CONFIG_SND_SOC_SOF
- 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
- 2026-08-15 (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
- 0.17%, higher than 5.8% of all CVEssource
- CISA KEV
- not listedthe KEV catalogue
- Debian urgency
- not yet assignedsource
- Subsystem
- sound/soc
Upstream fixes
The versions the CNA records as introducing and fixing this, and the commit for each. source
| Introduced | Fixed in | Commit |
|---|---|---|
| 5.18 | 6.1.178 | 1dc25a3e0636 |
| 5.18 | 6.6.145 | ee781058cd4d |
| 5.18 | 6.12.97 | ecf67f1302f2 |
| 5.18 | 6.18.40 | d3abaedf6a58 |
| 5.18 | 7.1.5 | 2a591bf6fd41 |
| 5.18 | 7.2 | 390aa4c9339b |
Why the CNA scored it this way
Quoted from the kernel CNA's own scoring file, word for word. A highlighted metric carries the most severe value CVSS v3.1 defines for it, which is what pushes the score up. source
- AV:LAttack vector, local
- The bug is reached on local SOF/IPC3 systems when DSP firmware sends SOF_IPC_GLB_COMP_MSG notifications that flow through sof_ipc3_rx_msg() to sof_ipc3_control_update() and snd_sof_update_control(); setup uses local ALSA ioctl/TLV on /dev/snd/controlC*, not remote network input.
- AC:LAttack complexity, low
- An attacker can create the inconsistent local_cdata->data->size via ALSA bytes put/get IPC to the DSP and then reliably provoke matching firmware control notifications by driving audio activity; no uncontrollable memory layout or victim timing is required.
- PR:LPrivileges required, low
- Reaching SOF binary kcontrols requires only local ALSA access to sound control devices, which is typically granted to unprivileged users in the audio group without init-namespace root or CAP_SYS_ADMIN; user namespaces do not grant this hardware path.
- UI:NUser interaction, none
- No separate victim action is needed; exploitation uses the attacker's own local ALSA clients and audio sessions to reach the vulnerable IPC3 control-update path on affected SOF hardware.
- S:UScope, unchanged
- Impact is kernel heap corruption and privilege escalation within the host kernel security domain; it does not cross VM, container, or IOMMU boundaries into another authority.
- C:HConfidentiality impact, high
- The unchecked memcpy can write past the ipc_control_data kzalloc buffer, corrupting adjacent kernel heap objects and enabling information disclosure or further memory corruption primitives beyond the intended control cache.
- I:HIntegrity impact, high
- This is an out-of-bounds kernel heap write that can overwrite adjacent structures and be leveraged for control-flow hijack or local privilege escalation, not merely limited or benign data modification.
- A:HAvailability impact, high
- Writing beyond the allocated ipc_control_data buffer can corrupt critical kernel heap metadata or objects and cause kernel oops/panic or system instability, satisfying high availability impact for kernel crashes.