CVE-2026-74712

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 when host vDPA memory keys are created during IOTLB/set_map handling on /dev/vhost-vdpa (ioctl/write from QEMU/vhost), not from remote network packet processing; worst case is a co-tenant VM guest driving host QEMU virtio memory updates on the same mlx5 vDPA host.

AC:LAttack complexity, low

Once mlx5 vDPA user MR setup runs, create_direct_keys() always passes an oversized inlen to mlx5_cmd_exec_cb(), deterministically causing mlx5_copy_to_msg() to read past the slab allocation; no race or victim state is required beyond normal virtio memory mapping.

PR:NPrivileges required, none

In cloud mlx5 virtio-vDPA deployments a malicious VM tenant needs no host credentials—normal guest virtio-net bring-up causes QEMU to issue vhost IOTLB updates that invoke mlx5_vdpa_set_map() and create_user_mr() on the host without CAP_NET_ADMIN or root in the host init namespace.

UI:NUser interaction, none

Exploitation requires only automated virtio driver initialization and memory table updates; no additional victim clicks, mounts, or manual actions are needed beyond provisioning a vDPA-backed VM, which is the intended operational path.

S:CScope, changed

The vulnerable mlx5 vDPA code runs in the hypervisor host kernel while the practical attacker is a guest VM tenant; successful slab out-of-bounds reads and corrupted firmware commands cross the guest/host virtualization boundary per KVM guest-to-host guidance.

C:HConfidentiality impact, high

Incorrect inlen makes mlx5_copy_to_msg() perform a slab out-of-bounds read (KASAN-reported) of adjacent kernel heap memory, copying leaked bytes into CREATE_MKEY commands and enabling arbitrary kernel information disclosure, not a bounded benign leak.

I:HIntegrity impact, high

The over-read injects adjacent heap contents into firmware CREATE_MKEY command buffers, corrupting memory-key setup data sent to the mlx5 device; this is exploitable kernel memory corruption that can alter device DMA mappings and enable further control, not a read-only crash.

A:HAvailability impact, high

The flaw triggers a KASAN slab-out-of-bounds fault in mlx5_core cmd_exec() during normal MR creation; such heap corruption commonly causes kernel oops/panic and can also destabilize vDPA networking on repeated virtio memory remaps.