Executive brief
The Linux kernel's Wacom tablet driver has a resource management bug where hardware is started but not properly stopped if subsequent initialization steps fail. This can lead to device resources remaining active and potentially unavailable for proper reuse, affecting systems with Wacom pen tablets or input devices.
Technical details
The vulnerability exists in wacom_parse_and_register() function in drivers/hid/wacom_sys.c. After calling hid_hw_start() to initialize the HID hardware, several subsequent initialization steps (input registration, LED initialization, remote initialization) can fail. The bug is that these failure paths jump to a cleanup label that releases Wacom-specific resources without calling hid_hw_stop() to properly shut down the HID hardware, leaving the device in an inconsistent state. The fix routes all post-hid_hw_start() failures through a new error path that explicitly calls hid_hw_stop() before releasing driver resources. This is a resource management issue identified through static analysis.
Affected products
- Linux Linux kernel Multiple versions from 2.6.11 through 6.x and 7.x (affected commit c1d6708bf0d3)
Timeline
- 2026-08-10: disclosed
- 2026-06-04: patched: Upstream commit ec2612b8ad9e642596db011dd8b6568ef1edeaa1