---
id: "CVE-2026-98876"
kind: "vulnerability"
aliases: ["CVE-2026-98876"]
title: "Linux kernel: host1x error teardown can dereference a null pointer"
severity: "unknown"
cvss: null
epss: 0.00215
exploited: false
status: "open"
category: "infrastructure"
products: []
ecosystems: []
tags: ["infrastructure", "linux-kernel", "nvidia-tegra"]
not_affected_if: []
published_at: "2026-10-23T12:18:21+00:00"
first_seen_at: "2026-10-23T21:57:33+00:00"
updated_at: "2026-10-25T12:38:51+00:00"
sources: [{"source": "nvd", "url": "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98876", "first_seen_at": "2026-10-23T21:57:33+00:00"}, {"source": "epss", "url": "https://api.first.org/data/v1/epss?cve=CVE-2026-98876", "first_seen_at": "2026-10-25T12:38:51+00:00"}]
---

# Linux kernel: host1x error teardown can dereference a null pointer

In the Linux kernel's host1x bus code, the error teardown paths dereference client->ops without checking it for NULL, unlike the forward init paths. A NULL client->ops during a failed device init can crash the kernel.

_Summary, check and fix written by a model from the sources; labelled as such._

## Timeline

- 2026-10-23T21:57:33+00:00 nvd https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98876
- 2026-10-25T12:38:51+00:00 epss https://api.first.org/data/v1/epss?cve=CVE-2026-98876

## From the sources

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

host1x: bus: Fix missing ops null check in error teardown

In host1x_device_init(), the error teardown paths do not check
client->ops before dereferencing it, unlike the forward init paths
which correctly guard with 'client->ops &&'. This can result in a
NULL pointer dereference if client->ops is NULL.

Fix by adding the missing client->ops check in both the teardown
and teardown_late labels.

---

_Free to read at a human pace. An API with keys and an MCP server are in preparation; early access: hello@infrastack.ai_