Cloudanix VulnDB

CVE-2026-98513

None

CVSS

—

EPSS

0.2%

Published

Oct 18, 2026

CISA due date

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Cloudanix analysis

Monitor only SSVC: Track

A driver bug in the Linux kernel can keep graphics hardware powered on longer than needed, wasting battery life on laptops until fixed by an update.

Exploitation
Local Privilege
Attacker needs
Local User
Complexity
Theoretical
Impact
Other
Component
OS kernel
Class
Other
Remediation
Patch
Effort
Medium
Patch risk
Low

What it actually does

Failure to drop a runtime PM reference in nouveau_connector_detect() when nvif_outp_edid_get() returns an error, leaving the GPU powered on until a subsequent successful detect call.

Why it matters to the business

Laptops and systems using the nouveau driver experience unnecessary power draw and faster battery drain until the kernel is updated or the device is power-cycled.

How an attack unfolds

An attacker with local access or the ability to trigger EDID reads (via display hotplug or connector probing) can repeatedly cause the error path to be taken, keeping the GPU awake and increasing power consumption; no remote code execution or privilege escalation is involved.

How to fix it

Update the Linux kernel to a version containing the fix for the unbalanced runtime PM reference in nouveau_connector_detect(). Reboot or reload the nouveau module after patching.

How to confirm the fix worked

Confirm the kernel source contains the balanced reference on the nvif_outp_edid_get() error path; monitor runtime PM usage counters for nouveau devices before and after connector detect calls.

Typical attack path

  1. Trigger repeated connector detection events that cause nvif_outp_edid_get() to fail
  2. Observe sustained GPU power state due to unbalanced runtime PM reference
  3. Continue normal operation while the device remains powered longer than intended

How to detect it

Review kernel logs for repeated nouveau connector detection failures and correlate with elevated GPU power state durations; inspect runtime PM reference counts via sysfs for nouveau devices.

What your security team should do

  • Apply the upstream kernel fix at the next maintenance window
  • Prioritize systems with battery-powered or mobile workloads
  • Monitor nouveau power usage metrics until patched

The record

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: drm/nouveau: Fix runtime PM leak in nouveau_connector_detect() If nvif_outp_edid_get() fails, nouveau_connector_detect() returns early without dropping the runtime PM reference taken at the start of the function, keeping the device powered on until the next successful detect. Balance the reference on the error path like the other exit paths do.

Affected packages

Ecosystem Package Introduced Fixed