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Linux Kernel EUVDEUVD-2026-59730

| CVE-2026-74537 HIGH
2026-08-15 Linux GHSA-4f56-g5vg-w2cg
8.8
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: Linux
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Attack ChainAIDerived

Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain

  1. Access
    Enter Bluetooth adjacency range
  2. Delivery
    Identify target with ISO socket active
  3. Exploit
    Send repeated ISO connection requests
  4. Execution
    Race iso_conn_ready against victim iso_sock_release
  5. Persist
    Trigger use-after-free on freed sk dereference
  6. Impact
    Corrupt kernel heap to escalate privileges or crash system

Vulnerability Assessment

Exploitation Conditions

Bluetooth must be enabled and the kernel must include Bluetooth ISO (isochronous channel) support compiled in - systems built without CONFIG_BT_LE_ISO, or with Bluetooth physically absent or rfkill-blocked, are not affected. A local application must have opened at least one AF_BLUETOOTH / BTPROTO_ISO socket and be in the process of closing it via iso_sock_release() concurrently with an externally-initiated ISO connection - meaning a victim process running Bluetooth LE Audio or a similar ISO-consuming application must be actively tearing down a connection at the moment of the attack. The exploitable race window is narrow: the attacker's incoming ISO connection must reach iso_conn_ready() after conn->sk is read but before lock_sock() is acquired on the teardown thread, requiring either precise timing or high-frequency repeated attempts. The Adjacent attack vector (CVSS AV:A) restricts exploitation to Bluetooth proximity - typically 10 to 100 meters depending on hardware class. Per the CVSS PR:N rating, no Bluetooth authentication or pairing is required from the attacker to initiate an ISO connection attempt against the target.

Impact

The NVD CVSS score of 8.8 with vector AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H reflects the theoretical severity of kernel-level UAF exploitation via an adjacent Bluetooth attacker requiring no authentication. However, multiple signals substantially temper real-world priority. EPSS at 0.17% (6th percentile) indicates very low exploitation probability relative to all known CVEs. No CISA KEV entry and no public POC exist. The AC:L rating in the provided vector arguably understates difficulty: reliably winning the narrow race between two concurrent kernel threads requires timing precision that typically elevates practical exploitation complexity - independent assessment warrants AC:H. The Adjacent attack vector (Bluetooth range, typically 10-100 meters) eliminates internet-scale exploitation entirely, restricting realistic threat actors to those with physical or near-physical proximity. Real-world priority is highest for mobile Linux platforms, IoT devices running LE Audio stacks, and desktop systems with Bluetooth ISO actively in use in accessible environments; servers and systems with Bluetooth disabled have zero exposure.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker within Bluetooth range of a target running a vulnerable Linux kernel - such as a laptop or IoT device using LE Audio - repeatedly sends ISO connection requests while the victim device is actively cycling Bluetooth ISO sockets open and closed (as an LE Audio application would during normal operation). By timing incoming ISO connection processing in iso_conn_ready() to overlap precisely with a concurrent iso_sock_release() call, the attacker causes the freed socket structure to be dereferenced, potentially overwriting kernel memory to achieve privilege escalation to root or inducing a kernel panic. No public POC is available at time of analysis, making reliable weaponization non-trivial without significant kernel-level exploit development effort.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
Patch available 0.2% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Aug 17, 2026

Use-after-free race condition in the Linux kernel's Bluetooth ISO subsystem allows an unauthenticated attacker within Bluetooth adjacency range to corrupt kernel memory by exploiting concurrent socket teardown in iso_conn_ready(), potentially leading to privilege escalation or system crash on affected hosts. The flaw - present since the introduction of Bluetooth 5.2 ISO channel support in Linux 5.15 - arises because conn->sk is dereferenced without holding a lock or refcount, enabling a concurrent iso_sock_release() call to free the socket before iso_conn_ready() completes its dereference. No public exploit or CISA KEV entry exists at time of analysis, and the EPSS score of 0.17% (6th percentile) reflects very low near-term exploitation probability despite the High CVSS score.

RemediationAI

Upgrade to Linux 6.18.44, 7.1.8, or 7.2-rc6 (or any later release), which incorporate fix commits 4e9b5e8669b3602a4e01b6d1e9539b72e42c84d5, 1308d72903d792d10b82bc4ef08b8a4452308b04, and 0d255e63fcf3f13a570d7ac11678fa1164ac015c respectively, available from the kernel stable tree at https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/. Linux distributions (Debian, Ubuntu, RHEL, SUSE, Arch) tracking affected stable branches will ship backported fixes via their security update channels - apply distribution security updates promptly and monitor vendor advisories. If immediate patching is not possible: (1) Disable Bluetooth entirely with 'rfkill block bluetooth' or by masking the bluetooth.service - this fully eliminates attack surface at the cost of all Bluetooth functionality; (2) Blacklist or unload the Bluetooth ISO kernel module ('modprobe -r' or adding to /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf) if LE Audio is not required - this preserves classic Bluetooth while removing the vulnerable code path; (3) Configure Bluetooth adapter as non-discoverable to reduce proximity-based targeting, though this is a defense-in-depth measure and does not prevent exploitation by a determined attacker who already knows the target MAC address. Systems without Bluetooth hardware, or with Bluetooth administratively disabled prior to this disclosure, require no remediation action.

Affected VersionsENISA

Linux patch: 7.1.8
Linux 27c24fda62b601d6f9ca5e992502578c4310876f <1308d72903d792d10b82bc4ef08b8a4452308b04
Linux 5.15
Linux patch: 0
Linux 27c24fda62b601d6f9ca5e992502578c4310876f <0d255e63fcf3f13a570d7ac11678fa1164ac015c
Linux patch: 7.2-rc6
Linux patch: 6.18.44
Linux 27c24fda62b601d6f9ca5e992502578c4310876f <4e9b5e8669b3602a4e01b6d1e9539b72e42c84d5

Affected Packages

euvd linux no fix

Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)

Affects your stack

Affects 1 package in euvd

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

The vulnerability resides in the Linux kernel's Bluetooth ISO subsystem, which implements isochronous channels introduced in Bluetooth 5.2 and primarily used for LE Audio streaming. The affected function iso_conn_ready() handles the kernel-side establishment of incoming ISO Bluetooth connections. The root cause is a concurrent memory access flaw: conn->sk - a pointer to the kernel socket struct - is read in iso_conn_ready() without either acquiring conn->lock or incrementing the socket's reference count. On a concurrent thread, iso_sock_release() can acquire lock_sock(), null conn->sk, release the lock, and call iso_sock_kill() to free the socket object between the initial read and the lock_sock() call in iso_conn_ready() - a classic time-of-check to time-of-use race (CWE-362) resulting in a use-after-free (CWE-416, though NVD has not formally assigned a CWE). The fix holds the sk refcount in iso_conn_ready() before accessing conn->sk, validates socket state after acquiring lock_sock(), and ensures conn->sk is nulled only under lock_sock(). Affected CPE: cpe:2.3:a:linux:linux:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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Severity by source

Vendor (Linux) PRIMARY 8.8 HIGH
AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 7.5 HIGH

Race condition timing requirement elevates AC to H over the provided AC:L; Adjacent Bluetooth vector, unauthenticated initiation, and full kernel-level impact on C/I/A are otherwise unchanged.

3.1 AV:A/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
4.0 AV:A/AC:H/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
SUSE 7.0 HIGH
AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Red Hat 7.0 MEDIUM

Primary rating from Vendor (Linux).

CVSS VectorVendor: Linux

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

Lifecycle Timeline

4
CVSS changed
Aug 17, 2026 - 06:22 NVD
8.8 (HIGH)
Patch available
Aug 15, 2026 - 13:04 EUVD
CVE Published
Aug 15, 2026 - 12:27 cve.org
UNKNOWN (no severity yet)
CVE Published
Aug 15, 2026 - 12:27 cve.org
HIGH 8.8

DescriptionCVE.org

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

Bluetooth: ISO: hold sk properly in iso_conn_ready

sk deref in iso_conn_ready must be done either under conn->lock, or holding a refcount, to avoid concurrent close. conn->sk is currently accessed without either:

[Task 1] [Task 2] iso_sock_release iso_conn_ready sk = conn->sk lock_sock(sk) conn->sk = NULL lock_sock(sk) release_sock(sk) iso_sock_kill(sk) UAF on sk deref

Fix possible UAF by holding sk refcount in iso_conn_ready(). Also recheck after lock_sock that the socket is still valid. Adjust locking so conn->sk is cleared only under lock_sock.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

A use-after-free vulnerability in Linux kernel Bluetooth ISO subsystem (CVE-2026-74537, CVSS 8.8) allows nearby Bluetooth attackers to corrupt kernel memory, potentially leading to privilege escalation or system outages on affected Linux hosts. The flaw requires no authentication and affects systems running Linux 5.15 and later with active Bluetooth connectivity. No public exploit identified at time of analysis, but the vulnerability's severity warrants prompt patching to prevent potential compromise of system integrity and availability.

Business Impact: High
Compensating Controls

Apply vendor patch.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.2%
Top 94% exploitable
Prevalence
High
Linux kernel near-ubiquitous; Bluetooth ISO narrows effective attack surface
Data Quality
6 sources
Confidence: High

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.2%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Scheduled
Exploitation· derived
None
System Exposure· derived
Controlled
Automatable· derived
No
Human Impact
High

Priority Score

44
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +44
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.

Vendor StatusVendor

SUSE

Severity: Important
Product Status
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP7 Affected
SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP7 Affected
SUSE Linux Enterprise High Availability Extension 15 SP7 Affected
SUSE Linux Enterprise High Availability Extension 15 SP7 Affected
SUSE Linux Enterprise High Availability Extension 16.0 Affected

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