Medium [CVE-2026-72214] Fix missing nvmem_device_put causing reference leak
This medium-severity Red Hat Linux advisory covers CVE-2026-72214.
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Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: power: supply: cpcap-battery: Fix missing nvmem_device_put() causing reference leak In cpcap_battery_detect_battery_type(), the reference to an nvmem device obtained via nvmem_device_find() is not released with nvmem_device_put() on the success or read-failure paths, causing a permanent reference leak.
The driver’s retry logic on subsequent battery property reads can compound this leak, preventing the nvmem device from ever being freed. Found by code review.
This vulnerability occurs because a reference to a non-volatile memory (nvmem) device is not properly released after being acquired. Repeated attempts to read battery properties can exacerbate this issue, leading to a permanent memory leak.
This can ultimately result in resource exhaustion, potentially causing system instability or a denial of service. Red Hat severity: Moderate — CVSS 5.5 (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H).
Weakness: CWE-772. Red Hat lists Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10; Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6; Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7; Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8; Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 as not affected.
Affected versions
No affected-version range was extracted from the source record. The vendor advisory is authoritative — check it before change work.
Official advisory · medium-confidence parse· fetched 24 days ago·verify at source
Fixed versions
No fixed release is recorded yet. That does not prove no patch exists — confirm against the vendor advisory.
Official advisory · medium-confidence parse· fetched 24 days ago·verify at source
Mitigation
The source record does not include mitigation steps. That is not a statement that no fix exists — read the vendor advisory below for the authoritative guidance.
Official advisory · medium-confidence parse· fetched 24 days ago·verify at source
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