Vulnerabilities

Vulnerability · CVE-2026-43331

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/kexec: Disable KCOV instrumentation after load_segments() The load_segments() function changes…

Published May 8, 2026 · catalog updated Jun 19, 2026 · linux kernel

Check if you run it

No confirmed exploitation is on record for CVE-2026-43331. EPSS is 0.12%. Act only if a listed version of linux kernel is installed.

Gaps on this record

  • No vendor fix or required action is stored. Compare the linked advisory before you change production.
Severity
Medium5.5
Known exploitation
Not in CISA/VulnCheck KEV
EPSS
0.12%
Remediation
Advisory link
Affected products
cpe linux/linux kernel

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/kexec: Disable KCOV instrumentation after load_segments() The load_segments() function changes segment registers, invalidating GS base (which KCOV relies on for per-cpu data). When CONFIG_KCOV is enabled, any subsequent instrumented C code call (e.g. native_gdt_invalidate()) begins crashing the kernel in an endless loop. To reproduce the problem, it's sufficient to do kexec on a KCOV-instrumented kernel: $ kexec -l /boot/otherKernel $ kexec -e The real-world context for this problem is enabling crash dump collection in syzkaller. For this, the tool loads a panic kernel before fuzzing and then calls makedumpfile after the panic. This workflow requires both CONFIG_KEXEC and CONFIG_KCOV to be enabled simultaneously. Adding safeguards directly to the KCOV fast-path (__sanitizer_cov_trace_pc()) is also undesirable as it would introduce an extra performance overhead. Disabling instrumentation for the individual functions would be too fragile, so disable KCOV instrumentation for the entire machine_kexec_64.c and physaddr.c. If coverage-guided fuzzing ever needs these components in the future, other approaches should be considered. The problem is not relevant for 32 bit kernels as CONFIG_KCOV is not supported there. [ bp: Space out comment for better readability. ]

Are you affected?

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  • cpe linux/linux kernel7.0

How to fix CVE-2026-43331

What to do

Three questions, each answered from this record only. Confirm the vendor advisory before you patch.

Should you patch?

No confirmed exploitation is on record for CVE-2026-43331. EPSS is 0.12%. Act only if a listed version of linux kernel is installed.

Which versions are affected?

Compare what you have installed with linux/linux kernel 7.0. Compare the installed version with the linked vendor advisory before you change production.

What should an analyst verify?

No weakness class is stored. EPSS 0.12%. There is no CISA KEV listing. No Exploit-DB or Metasploit reference is linked. Use the source links for the original advisory.

Technology hubs

Code

The project this record applies to. Exploit listings stay in References.

Timeline

Detection, updates, and resolution for this record.

  1. May 8, 2026 · NIST NVD

    Detected

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/kexec: Disable KCOV instrumentation after load_segments() The load_segments() function changes segment registers, invalidating GS base (which KCOV relies on for per-cpu data). When CONFIG_KCOV is enabled, any subsequent instrumented C code call (e.g. native_gdt_invalidate()) begins crashing the kernel in an endless loop. To re

  2. Jun 19, 2026 · NIST NVD

    Updated

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/kexec: Disable KCOV instrumentation after load_segments() The load_segments() function changes segment registers, invalidating GS base (which KCOV relies on for per-cpu data). When CONFIG_KCOV is enabled, any subsequent instrumented C code call (e.g. native_gdt_invalidate()) begins crashing the kernel in an endless loop. To re

Sources

  • CVE.orgVulnerability recordCVE-2026-43331

    Official CVE identifier

    cve.org
  • FIRST EPSSExploitation probabilityCVE-2026-43331

    30-day exploitation probability 0.1%

    first.org
  • NIST NVDVulnerability recordCVE-2026-43331

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/kexec: Disable KCOV instrumentation after load_segments() The load_segments() function changes segment registers, invalidating GS base (which KCOV relies on for per-cpu data). When CONFIG_KCOV is enabled, a

    nvd.nist.gov
  • Ubuntu Security NoticesVendor advisoryCVE-2026-43331

    Several security issues were discovered in the Linux kernel. An attacker could possibly use these to compromise the system. This update corrects flaws in the following subsystems: - ARM32 architecture; - ARM64 architecture; - MIPS architecture; - x86 architecture; - Intel NPU Dri

    ubuntu.com

References

Freshness

Last verified in this catalog Oct 18, 2026. Significant claims (KEV, EPSS, CVSS, affected ranges) come from the source rows above — open the original publisher for the authoritative advisory.