watchdog: pretimeout: Fix UAF in watchdog_unregister_governor()
When a watchdog governor is unregistered, it updates existing watchdog
devices that were using this governor by falling back to `default_gov`.
If the governor being unregistered is currently set as `default_gov`,
the `default_gov` is never cleared. This leads to 2 use-after-free
issues:
1. New watchdog devices registered after this point will inherit the
dangling `default_gov`.
2. Existing watchdog devices using the unregistered governor will have
their `wdd->gov` reassigned to the dangling `default_gov`.
Fix the UAF by clearing `default_gov` if it matches the governor being
unregistered.
Analysis and contextual insights are available on OpenCVE Cloud.
No vendor fix or workaround currently provided.
Additional remediation guidance may be available on OpenCVE Cloud.
Tracking
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| Source | ID | Title |
|---|---|---|
Debian DLA |
DLA-4745-1 | linux-6.12 security update |
Wed, 12 Aug 2026 19:15:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Weaknesses | CWE-416 |
Wed, 12 Aug 2026 00:15:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Weaknesses | CWE-825 | |
| References |
| |
| Metrics |
threat_severity
|
cvssV3_1
|
Mon, 10 Aug 2026 17:00:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Weaknesses | CWE-416 |
Mon, 10 Aug 2026 12:30:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Description | In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: watchdog: pretimeout: Fix UAF in watchdog_unregister_governor() When a watchdog governor is unregistered, it updates existing watchdog devices that were using this governor by falling back to `default_gov`. If the governor being unregistered is currently set as `default_gov`, the `default_gov` is never cleared. This leads to 2 use-after-free issues: 1. New watchdog devices registered after this point will inherit the dangling `default_gov`. 2. Existing watchdog devices using the unregistered governor will have their `wdd->gov` reassigned to the dangling `default_gov`. Fix the UAF by clearing `default_gov` if it matches the governor being unregistered. | |
| Title | watchdog: pretimeout: Fix UAF in watchdog_unregister_governor() | |
| First Time appeared |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| CPEs | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | |
| Vendors & Products |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| References |
|
|
Status: PUBLISHED
Assigner: Linux
Published:
Updated: 2026-08-17T05:04:00.474Z
Reserved: 2026-07-30T09:28:09.385Z
Link: CVE-2026-68357
No data.
Status : Received
Published: 2026-08-10T13:20:28.160
Modified: 2026-08-17T06:17:43.977
Link: CVE-2026-68357
OpenCVE Enrichment
Updated: 2026-08-13T04:00:09Z
Debian DLA