Linux Kernel CVE-2026-43078

Upgrade to patched kernel versions immediately: 5.10.254+ for 5.10.x series, 5.15.204+ for 5.15.x, 6.1.170+ for 6.1.x, 6.6.137+ for 6.6.x, 6.12.85+ for 6.12.x, 6.18.24+ for 6.18.x, 6.19.14+ for 6.19.x, or 7.0+ for mainline. Consult your distribution's security advisories for vendor-specific update procedures (apt/yum/zypper update kernel packages, then reboot). Organizations unable to immediately patch should implement compensating controls: disable the AF_ALG interface by blacklisting the af_alg kernel module (echo 'blacklist af_alg' >> /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf and reboot, or rmmod af_alg if not in use), though this breaks applications depending on userspace crypto socket APIs including some VPN clients and crypto libraries. Alternatively, restrict AF_ALG socket creation through SELinux/AppArmor policies or seccomp filters denying socket(AF_ALG) syscalls, which prevents module loading but requires custom policy development and may break legitimate crypto operations. In containerized environments, use kernel module filtering to prevent container access to af_alg. All workarounds trade functionality for security; testing is mandatory before production deployment. Verify patches using uname -r and checking against kernel.org stable commit hashes listed in references.