CVE-2026-43177

What it actually does

Runtime power management reference leak in ipu6_pci_probe() error paths that jump to out_ipu6_bus_del_devices without calling pm_runtime_put_sync(), leaving unbalanced RPM references that can degrade system stability or availability.

Why it matters to the business

Limited operational risk on systems with Intel IPU6 hardware; potential for localized crashes or hangs during driver initialization failures, but low likelihood given local attack vector and negligible EPSS score 172 days after publication.

How an attack unfolds

An attacker with local access triggers repeated error paths during IPU6 PCI probe (for example via module reload or hardware fault injection) to accumulate unbalanced RPM references and induce denial of service; no named threat actors or public exploits are known.

How to fix it

Apply the upstream fix that inserts pm_runtime_put_sync() before the out_ipu6_bus_del_devices label in ipu6_pci_probe(); update to a kernel containing the resolution once released by distributions.

How to confirm the fix worked

Inspect the ipu6_pci_probe() function in the media/ipu6 driver for balanced pm_runtime_get_sync / put_sync pairs on all error paths; perform fault-injection testing of probe failures and verify reference counts return to baseline.

Typical attack path

1. Gain local user access on a Linux system containing IPU6 hardware
2. Force or induce failure conditions in ipu6_pci_probe()
3. Accumulate unbalanced runtime PM references across multiple attempts
4. Trigger resource exhaustion or system instability

How to detect it

Review kernel logs (dmesg, journalctl) for IPU6 probe error messages and repeated device initialization failures; correlate with system stability events on hosts containing ipu6_pci devices.

What your security team should do

• Track kernel updates for IPU6-containing distributions and schedule rollout on affected hardware
• Add kernel log monitoring for IPU6 probe failures
• Restrict local access on systems exposing the IPU6 driver where feasible