Memory Leak Vulnerability in the Linux Kernel's Regulator Component

CVE-2022-50887

What is CVE-2022-50887?

A vulnerability exists due to improper handling of the reference count in the regulator system of the Linux kernel. When managing the regulator nodes, the refcount was not balanced, leading to potential memory leaks. Specifically, the function of_get_regulator() increments the refcount when a node is parsed, but a corresponding of_node_put() was not always called, resulting in unbalanced reference counts. This flaw can lead to memory not being released properly, which could affect system performance and stability over prolonged usage.

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