CVE-2026-72412

Technical Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

s390/mm: Fix handling of _PAGE_UNUSED pte bit

The _PAGE_UNUSED softbit should not really be lying around. Its sole

purpose is to signal to try_to_unmap_one() and try_to_migrate_one()

that the page can be discarded instead of being moved / swapped.

KVM has no way to know why a page is being unmapped, so it sets the bit

on userspace ptes corresponding to unused guest pages every time they

get unmapped. KVM has no reasonable way to clear the bit once the page

is in use again.

While set_ptes() checks and clears the bit, other paths that set new

ptes did not. This led to used pages being thrown out as if they were

unused, causing guest corruption.

Fix the issue by clearing the _PAGE_UNUSED bit for present ptes in

set_pte(), i.e. whenever a present pte is getting set. The check in

set_ptes() is then redundant and can be removed.

Also fix gmap_helper_try_set_pte_unused() to only set the bit if the

pte is present; the _P

Remediation

Check the references section for vendor advisories, patches, and mitigation guidance. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.

References