CVE-2026-53370
Received Received - Intake

Improper ACR Mask Validation in Linux Kernel

Vulnerability report for CVE-2026-53370, including description, CVSS score, EPSS score, affected products, exploitability, helpful resources, and attack-flow context.

Publication date: 2026-07-19

Last updated on: 2026-07-19

Assigner: kernel.org

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: perf/x86/intel: Improve validation and configuration of ACR masks Currently there are several issues on the user space ACR mask validation and configuration. - The validation for user space ACR mask (attr.config2) is incomplete, e.g., the ACR mask could include the index which belongs to another ACR events group, but it's not validated. - An early return on an invalid ACR mask caused all subsequent ACR groups to be skipped. - The stale hardware ACR mask (hw.config1) is not cleared before setting new hardware ACR mask. The following changes address all of the above issues. - Figure out the event index group of an ACR group. Any bits in the user-space mask not present in the index group are now dropped. - Instead of an early return on invalid bits, drop only the invalid portions and continue iterating through all ACR events to ensure full configuration. - Explicitly clear the stale hardware ACR mask for each event prior to writing the new configuration. Besides, a non-leader event member of ACR group could be disabled in theory. This could cause bit-shifting errors in the acr_mask of remaining group members. But since ACR sampling requires all events to be active, this should not be a big concern in real use case. Add a "FIXME" comment to notice this risk.

CVSS Scores

EPSS Scores

Probability:
Percentile:

Meta Information

Published
2026-07-19
Last Modified
2026-07-19
Generated
2026-07-19
AI Q&A
2026-07-19
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
EUVD

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 1 associated CPE
Vendor Product Version / Range
linux linux_kernel *

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
CWE Icon
KEV
KEV Icon
CWE ID Description
CWE-UNKNOWN

Attack-Flow Graph

AI Quick Actions

Instant insights powered by AI
Executive Summary

This vulnerability in the Linux kernel involves incomplete validation and configuration of ACR masks in the perf/x86/intel subsystem. Issues include improper validation of user space ACR mask (attr.config2), early return skipping subsequent ACR groups on invalid masks, and not clearing stale hardware ACR masks before setting new ones.

Detection Guidance

This vulnerability is specific to the Linux kernel's perf/x86/intel subsystem and relates to ACR mask validation. Detection requires checking kernel logs for related errors or examining kernel configuration. Commands like 'dmesg | grep perf' or 'journalctl -k | grep perf' may reveal issues. Ensure your kernel version includes the fix for CVE-2026-53370.

Impact Analysis

This vulnerability could allow incorrect ACR mask configurations, potentially leading to improper performance monitoring or unexpected behavior in Intel-based systems using the Linux kernel. It may cause inaccurate event tracking or missed events during profiling.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability in the Linux kernel's perf/x86/intel component does not directly affect compliance with GDPR or HIPAA. It involves incomplete validation of user space ACR mask configuration and potential stale hardware mask issues, which are technical implementation flaws rather than data protection or privacy violations.

Mitigation Strategies

Update your Linux kernel to a patched version that includes the fix for CVE-2026-53370. Monitor kernel logs for ACR-related errors. If using Intel processors with ACR events, ensure user-space tools validate ACR masks correctly. No network-specific mitigation is required as this is a local kernel issue.

Chat Assistant

Ask questions about this CVE
Hi! I’m here to help you understand CVE-2026-53370. Ask me anything about the vulnerability, its impact, or mitigation strategies.
0/70

EPSS Chart