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Linux Kernel EUVDEUVD-2026-93349

| CVE-2026-98364 HIGH
2026-10-06 Linux GHSA-qcc9-56m7-mpxg
7.8
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
    Gain local low-privileged access
  2. Delivery
    Configure/reach xfrm IPsec policy path
  3. Exploit
    Trigger IPv6 UDP send driving bundle creation
  4. Execution
    Race concurrent RTM_DELLINK freeing net_device
  5. Persist
    Dereference stale dev (use-after-free)
  6. Impact
    Corrupt kernel memory for privilege escalation

Vulnerability Assessment

Exploitation Conditions

Exploitation requires: (1) local access with the ability to invoke socket operations that reach the xfrm transform path (e.g. IPv6 UDP sends traversing xfrm_lookup_with_ifid / bundle creation), meaning the host must have IPsec/xfrm policies in use for the vulnerable code path to execute; (2) the ability to trigger concurrent net_device teardown via RTM_DELLINK, which typically needs CAP_NET_ADMIN - obtainable by an unprivileged user inside a user+network namespace on kernels permitting unprivileged namespaces; and (3) winning the inherent race window between dst->dev being read without a reference and dst_dev_put() freeing the device. Limiting factors: the attack is local only (not remotely reachable), depends on xfrm being active, requires namespace/network-admin capability to drive device deletion, and is probabilistic due to the timing race - all of which reduce realistic exploitability below the raw 7.8 score.

Impact

This is a race-condition use-after-free in the Linux kernel's xfrm (IPsec) transform bundle creation path, carrying a vendor CVSS of 7.8 (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H). The signals are consistent in pointing away from mass exploitation: EPSS is very low at 0.15% (4th percentile), the CVE is NOT in CISA KEV, and no public exploit or POC is referenced - only upstream git-stable patch commits. The CVSS attack vector is correctly Local (AV:L): the flaw is reached through a local socket operation (udpv6_sendmsg → xfrm_lookup_with_ifid → bundle creation) racing a concurrent RTM_DELLINK that frees the net_device. One signal worth scrutinizing is attack complexity: the vendor rates AC:L, but exploitation fundamentally depends on winning a narrow timing window between bundle creation reading dst->dev and a concurrent device deletion, which in practice is closer to AC:H - a reliable UAF primitive here requires precise scheduling, so I independently assess AC:H. Net judgment: this is a legitimate local privilege-escalation-class kernel bug (UAF can yield memory corruption and code execution), but it is a patch-and-move-on priority for most fleets rather than an emergency - there is no evidence of active or opportunistic exploitation, and the preconditions (configured IPsec/xfrm policy plus the ability to trigger device teardown) meaningfully constrain real-world reach. The 'Information Disclosure' tag understates the issue; the UAF read can be leveraged beyond disclosure toward corruption, consistent with the C:H/I:H/A:H rating.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

A local, low-privileged attacker on a host with IPsec/xfrm policies configured issues IPv6 UDP sends that drive xfrm bundle creation while simultaneously triggering network-device deletion (RTM_DELLINK) in a namespace they control. By winning the race, the stale freed net_device is dereferenced in xfrm6_fill_dst, giving a use-after-free that can be shaped into memory corruption and potential local privilege escalation. No public exploit identified at time of analysis, though the report includes a KASAN crash trace from a reproducer.

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 – Oct 07, 2026

A race-condition use-after-free in the Linux kernel's xfrm (IPsec) bundle-creation path allows a local attacker with low privileges to trigger a stale net_device pointer dereference, yielding kernel memory corruption with high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact. The flaw is reachable when an IPv6 UDP send traverses xfrm_lookup_with_ifid()/bundle creation while a concurrent RTM_DELLINK tears down the underlying net_device - a capability typically obtained by an unprivileged user inside a user+network namespace on kernels that permit unprivileged namespaces. Exploitation is local-only and probabilistic (it depends on winning an inherent timing race and on xfrm/IPsec policies being active), so realistic risk is below the vendor CVSS of 7.8; EPSS is low at 0.15% (4th percentile), no public exploit code was identified at time of analysis, and the issue is not in CISA KEV.

RemediationAI

Apply the vendor-released kernel patches: upgrade to Linux 7.2.8 or later on the stable branch, or to 7.3-rc4 or later on mainline, which contain upstream commits 9fa903b24b1f46b4ff5443bcd4aca23e5c57f9c1 and 8d85d6bc9c46dc41cb2be0eac53f8ab068c3a807 (see https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9fa903b24b1f46b4ff5443bcd4aca23e5c57f9c1 and https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8d85d6bc9c46dc41cb2be0eac53f8ab068c3a807, plus the NVD record at https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98364); until a patched kernel can be deployed, the most effective compensating control is to remove the attacker's ability to drive device teardown by disabling unprivileged user namespaces (sysctl kernel.unprivileged_userns_clone=0 or user.max_user_namespaces=0), with the trade-off that this breaks or degrades rootless containers, sandboxed browsers, and other namespace-isolating services. Where unprivileged namespaces must remain available, restrict CAP_NET_ADMIN (e.g. drop it in container/pod security contexts and via AppArmor/SELinux policy) so unprivileged processes cannot issue RTM_DELLINK, recognizing that privileged workloads will still be exposed. Because the vulnerable path only executes when xfrm/IPsec policies are in play, hosts that do not use IPsec or xfrm-based tunneling have a substantially reduced attack surface; disabling xfrm entirely removes the code path but is generally impractical on IPsec/VPN endpoints and tunnels. There is no vendor-released workaround that fully eliminates the race, so patching remains the only complete fix; note no public exploit code was identified at time of analysis and EPSS is low (0.15%), so prioritization should focus on multi-tenant hosts, container platforms permitting unprivileged namespaces, and systems actively running xfrm/IPsec.

Affected VersionsENISA

Linux patch: 0
Linux 25ee3286dcbc830a833354bb1d15567956844813 <9fa903b24b1f46b4ff5443bcd4aca23e5c57f9c1
Linux patch: 7.2.8
Linux 2.6.25
Linux patch: 7.3-rc4
Linux 25ee3286dcbc830a833354bb1d15567956844813 <8d85d6bc9c46dc41cb2be0eac53f8ab068c3a807

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

xfrm is the Linux kernel's IPsec transformation framework; when a packet needs an IPsec policy applied, xfrm_resolve_and_create_bundle() builds a dst bundle and populates it through xfrm_fill_dst()/xfrm6_fill_dst(). In the vulnerable code, xfrm_bundle_create() and xfrm_create_dummy_bundle() copy dst->dev into a local pointer WITHOUT holding a device reference, then hand that pointer to xfrm_fill_dst(). A concurrent RTM_DELLINK path calls dst_dev_put(), which replaces dst->dev and drops/frees the old net_device; the bundle code then dereferences the freed pointer inside xfrm6_fill_dst() (net/ipv6/xfrm6_policy.c) at the netdev_hold() call, producing the reported KASAN slab-use-after-free (read of size 8 in xfrm6_fill_dst -> xfrm_resolve_and_create_bundle -> xfrm_lookup_with_ifid -> ip6_dst_lookup_flow -> udpv6_sendmsg). The root cause class is a use-after-free (CWE-416) driven by a race condition (CWE-362) - a missing reference-acquisition discipline around an RCU-protected dst->dev. The upstream fix reads dst->dev through dst_dev_rcu() and keeps the RCU read-side critical section active until xfrm_fill_dst() has taken the required device references, closing the window in which device teardown can free the object. Affected CPE data identifies only cpe:2.3:a:linux:linux, i.e. mainline/stable kernel trees, with EUVD indicating the faulty pattern dates back to around Linux 2.6.25.

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Severity by source

Vendor (Linux) PRIMARY 7.8 HIGH
AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
vuln.today AI 7.0 HIGH

Local socket-driven trigger (AV:L); UAF depends on winning a device-teardown race, so AC:H; needs an unprivileged local account able to drive namespace device deletion, so PR:L; full kernel memory-corruption impact (C/I/A:H).

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

Primary rating from Vendor (Linux).

CVSS VectorVendor: Linux

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

Lifecycle Timeline

4
CVSS changed
Oct 07, 2026 - 07:22 NVD
7.8 (HIGH)
Patch available
Oct 06, 2026 - 10:02 EUVD
CVE Published
Oct 06, 2026 - 08:46 cve.org
HIGH 7.8
CVE Published
Oct 06, 2026 - 08:46 cve.org
UNKNOWN (no severity yet)

DescriptionCVE.org

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

xfrm: hold net_device reference under RCU in bundle creation

xfrm_bundle_create() and xfrm_create_dummy_bundle() read dst->dev into a local pointer without taking a device reference, then pass it to xfrm_fill_dst(). A concurrent RTM_DELLINK replaces dst->dev via dst_dev_put() and frees the old net_device, causing a use-after-free when xfrm6_fill_dst() later dereferences the stale dev pointer.

BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in xfrm6_fill_dst+0x82c/0x860 (net/ipv6/xfrm6_policy.c:86 netdev_hold()) Read of size 8 at addr ffff8880142fe588 by task exploit/153 Call Trace: xfrm6_fill_dst+0x82c/0x860 xfrm_resolve_and_create_bundle+0x21d4/0x2bd0 xfrm_lookup_with_ifid+0x485/0x1640 ip6_dst_lookup_flow+0x19b/0x1e0 udpv6_sendmsg+0x1443/0x2dd0

Fix this by reading dst->dev via dst_dev_rcu() and keeping the RCU read-side critical section active until xfrm_fill_dst() has taken the required device references.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

A high-severity race-condition use-after-free in the Linux kernel's xfrm (IPsec) subsystem can be triggered by a local attacker with low privileges, leading to kernel memory corruption and potential full system compromise. Organizations running affected Linux distributions-particularly multi-tenant, container, or IPsec-enabled systems-should care because successful exploitation could result in data theft, system takeover, or service disruption, although the attack requires local access, a timing race, and no public exploit identified at time of analysis. Leadership should ensure patching is prioritized and unprivileged user namespaces are restricted where operationally feasible.

Business Impact: Medium
Compensating Controls

Apply vendor patch.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.2%
Top 96% exploitable
Prevalence
Ubiquitous
Linux kernel networking stack runs on a vast fraction of systems
Data Quality
4 sources
Confidence: Medium

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
Defer
Exploitation· derived
None
System Exposure· derived
Small
Automatable· derived
No
Human Impact
Medium

Priority Score

39
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +39
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.

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