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Vulnerabilities

Vulnerability · CVE-2026-31561

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/cpu: Remove X86_CR4_FRED from the CR4 pinned bits mask Commit in Fixes added the FRED CR4 bit t…

Published Apr 24, 2026 · catalog updated Jun 17, 2026 · linux kernel

Check if you run it

No confirmed exploitation is on record for CVE-2026-31561. EPSS is 0.16%. Act only if a listed version of linux kernel is installed.

Gaps on this record

  • No vendor fix or required action is stored. Compare the linked advisory before you change production.
Severity
Medium5.5
Known exploitation
Not in CISA/VulnCheck KEV
EPSS
0.16%
Remediation
Advisory link
Affected products
cpe linux/linux kernel

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/cpu: Remove X86_CR4_FRED from the CR4 pinned bits mask Commit in Fixes added the FRED CR4 bit to the CR4 pinned bits mask so that whenever something else modifies CR4, that bit remains set. Which in itself is a perfectly fine idea. However, there's an issue when during boot FRED is initialized: first on the BSP and later on the APs. Thus, there's a window in time when exceptions cannot be handled. This becomes particularly nasty when running as SEV-{ES,SNP} or TDX guests which, when they manage to trigger exceptions during that short window described above, triple fault due to FRED MSRs not being set up yet. See Link tag below for a much more detailed explanation of the situation. So, as a result, the commit in that Link URL tried to address this shortcoming by temporarily disabling CR4 pinning when an AP is not online yet. However, that is a problem in itself because in this case, an attack on the kernel needs to only modify the online bit - a single bit in RW memory - and then disable CR4 pinning and then disable SM*P, leading to more and worse things to happen to the system. So, instead, remove the FRED bit from the CR4 pinning mask, thus obviating the need to temporarily disable CR4 pinning. If someone manages to disable FRED when poking at CR4, then idt_invalidate() would make sure the system would crash'n'burn on the first exception triggered, which is a much better outcome security-wise.

Are you affected?

Enter the version you run. The result uses only the ranges stored on this record.

The check returns affected, not affected, or incomplete. It does not guess a version that is missing from the record.

  • cpe linux/linux kernel6.9
  • cpe linux/linux kernel7.0

How to fix CVE-2026-31561

What to do

Three questions, each answered from this record only. Confirm the vendor advisory before you patch.

Should you patch?

No confirmed exploitation is on record for CVE-2026-31561. EPSS is 0.16%. Act only if a listed version of linux kernel is installed.

Which versions are affected?

Compare what you have installed with linux/linux kernel 6.9; linux/linux kernel 7.0. Compare the installed version with the linked vendor advisory before you change production.

What should an analyst verify?

No weakness class is stored. EPSS 0.16%. There is no CISA KEV listing. No Exploit-DB or Metasploit reference is linked. Use the source links for the original advisory.

Code

The project this record applies to. Exploit listings stay in References.

Timeline

Detection, updates, and resolution for this record.

  1. Apr 24, 2026 · NIST NVD

    Detected

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/cpu: Remove X86_CR4_FRED from the CR4 pinned bits mask Commit in Fixes added the FRED CR4 bit to the CR4 pinned bits mask so that whenever something else modifies CR4, that bit remains set. Which in itself is a perfectly fine idea. However, there's an issue when during boot FRED is initialized: first on the BSP and later on th

  2. Jun 17, 2026 · NIST NVD

    Updated

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/cpu: Remove X86_CR4_FRED from the CR4 pinned bits mask Commit in Fixes added the FRED CR4 bit to the CR4 pinned bits mask so that whenever something else modifies CR4, that bit remains set. Which in itself is a perfectly fine idea. However, there's an issue when during boot FRED is initialized: first on the BSP and later on th

Sources

  • CVE.orgVulnerability recordCVE-2026-31561

    Official CVE identifier

    cve.org
  • FIRST EPSSExploitation probabilityCVE-2026-31561

    30-day exploitation probability 0.2%

    first.org
  • NIST NVDVulnerability recordCVE-2026-31561

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: x86/cpu: Remove X86_CR4_FRED from the CR4 pinned bits mask Commit in Fixes added the FRED CR4 bit to the CR4 pinned bits mask so that whenever something else modifies CR4, that bit remains set. Which in itself

    nvd.nist.gov

References

Freshness

Last verified in this catalog Oct 18, 2026. Significant claims (KEV, EPSS, CVSS, affected ranges) come from the source rows above — open the original publisher for the authoritative advisory.