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Linux Kernel CVE-2026-89561

| EUVDEUVD-2026-76472 HIGH
2026-09-11 Linux GHSA-cq7m-m9w3-cxf7
7.5
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: Linux
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Severity by source

Vendor (Linux) PRIMARY
7.5 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
vuln.today AI
5.9 MEDIUM

Race condition requires concurrent MTU change on target interface, raising AC to H; impact is DoS-only with no confidentiality or integrity effect.

3.1 AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
4.0 AV:N/AC:H/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Primary rating from Vendor (Linux).

CVSS VectorVendor: Linux

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

Lifecycle Timeline

6
Metadata Corrected
Sep 13, 2026 - 09:40 vuln.today
tag: Information Disclosure removed
Analysis Generated
Sep 13, 2026 - 08:47 vuln.today
CVSS changed
Sep 13, 2026 - 07:22 NVD
7.5 (HIGH)
Patch available
Sep 11, 2026 - 21:18 EUVD
CVE Published
Sep 11, 2026 - 19:44 cve.org
HIGH 7.5
CVE Published
Sep 11, 2026 - 19:44 cve.org
UNKNOWN (no severity yet)

DescriptionCVE.org

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

ipv6: rpl: fix NULL dereference of idev in ipv6_rpl_srh_rcv()

ipv6_rpl_srh_rcv() dereferences idev from __in6_dev_get() without a NULL check when reading idev->cnf.rpl_seg_enabled.

When the device's MTU drops below IPV6_MIN_MTU, addrconf_ifdown() clears dev->ip6_ptr through RCU_INIT_POINTER(). A packet that passed the idev check in ip6_rcv_core() can then reach ipv6_rpl_srh_rcv() with dev->ip6_ptr already NULL.

Reproduced by flooding the receiving interface with ping6 traffic while flapping its MTU between 1500 and 1200:

BUG: KASAN: null-ptr-deref in ipv6_rpl_srh_rcv+0xb3/0x1070 Read of size 4 at addr 00000000000006b4 by task ping6/394

CPU: 2 UID: 0 PID: 394 Comm: ping6 Not tainted 7.2.0-rc7-micro-vm-dev-00095-g24ef02f934ee #240 PREEMPT(full) Call Trace: <IRQ> kasan_report+0xc6/0x100 ipv6_rpl_srh_rcv+0xb3/0x1070 ip6_protocol_deliver_rcu+0x759/0x9a0 ip6_input_finish+0xa8/0x1b0 ip6_input+0xe1/0x490 ipv6_rcv+0x33d/0x460 __netif_receive_skb_one_core+0xd6/0x130 process_backlog+0x2cc/0xa00 __napi_poll.constprop.0+0x56/0x270 net_rx_action+0x327/0x730 handle_softirqs+0x11e/0x630 do_softirq+0xb3/0xf0 </IRQ>

Both ipv6_rpl_srh_rcv() and ipv6_srh_rcv() are called only from ipv6_rthdr_rcv(), which already has an idev lookup.

Fix the NULL dereference on the RPL path by checking idev in ipv6_rthdr_rcv(), before it calls either function. The callees take idev as an argument and no longer call __in6_dev_get(), so the packet is now dropped in one place, with SKB_DROP_REASON_IPV6DISABLED on both paths.

AnalysisAI

NULL pointer dereference in the Linux kernel's IPv6 RPL source routing header handler (ipv6_rpl_srh_rcv()) enables a remote unauthenticated attacker to crash the kernel by delivering IPv6 RPL-header packets during a concurrent MTU-drop event on the receiving interface. The race exists because idev obtained from __in6_dev_get() is used without a NULL guard - addrconf_ifdown() can clear dev->ip6_ptr via RCU_INIT_POINTER() between the time ip6_rcv_core() validates idev and the time ipv6_rpl_srh_rcv() dereferences idev->cnf.rpl_seg_enabled. …

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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata

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Vulnerability AssessmentAI

Exploitation Exploitation requires three concurrent conditions: (1) the target kernel includes RPL source routing support compiled in (CONFIG_IPV6_RPL_LWTUNNEL or equivalent, present since Linux 5.7) - this is not the default in most general-purpose distribution kernels and is most common in IoT/6LoWPAN or embedded Linux deployments; (2) the receiving network interface undergoes an MTU change that crosses the IPV6_MIN_MTU (1280-byte) threshold during the attack, which either requires local/administrative access to the target's network interface or influence over path-MTU via crafted ICMPv6 Packet Too Big messages; and (3) IPv6 RPL routing-header packets must reach the host during the narrow race window. … Additional conditions and limiting factors are described in the full assessment.
Risk Assessment The vendor-assigned CVSS 3.1 score of 7.5 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H) correctly captures network reachability and the DoS-only impact, but AC:L is optimistic - reliably triggering the race requires timed concurrency between an MTU oscillation below 1280 bytes on the target interface and an in-flight IPv6 RPL packet stream, which is AC:H in practice. … Full risk analysis with EPSS, KEV, and SSVC signal comparison available after sign-in.
Exploit Scenario Full exploit scenario with step-by-step reproduction available after sign-in.
Remediation Upgrade to Linux 7.2.4, 6.18.50, or 7.3-rc1, which contain the fix that moves the idev NULL check into `ipv6_rthdr_rcv()` before dispatching to either the RPL or SRH handler. … Detailed patch versions, workarounds, and compensating controls in full report.

Recommended ActionAI

Within 24 hours: Identify all Linux systems with IPv6 enabled and RPL routing support in your inventory, particularly cloud infrastructure and public-facing services; for systems unable to patch immediately, evaluate disabling RPL routing if operationally feasible. …

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CVE-2026-89561 vulnerability details – vuln.today

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