net: add xmit recursion limit to tunnel xmit functions
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Denial of service
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 5 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-674.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: add xmit recursion limit to tunnel xmit functions Tunnel xmit functions (iptunnel_xmit, ip6tunnel_xmit) lack their own recursion limit. When a bond device in broadcast mode has GRE tap interfaces as slaves, and those GRE tunnels route back through the bond, multicast/broadcast traffic triggers infinite recursion between bond_xmit_broadcast() and ip_tunnel_xmit()/ip6_tnl_xmit(), causing kernel stack overflow. The existing XMIT_RECURSION_LIMIT (8) in the no-qdisc path is not sufficient because tunnel recursion involves route lookups and full IP output, consuming much more stack per level. Use a lower limit of 4 (IP_TUNNEL_RECURSION_LIMIT) to prevent overflow. Add recursion detection using dev_xmit_recursion helpers directly in iptunnel_xmit() and ip6tunnel_xmit() to cover all IPv4/IPv6 tunnel paths including UDP encapsulated tunnels (VXLAN, Geneve, etc.). Move dev_xmit_recursion helpers from net/core/dev.h to public header include/linux/netdevice.h so they can be used by tunnel code. BUG: KASAN: stack-out-of-bounds in blake2s.constprop.0+0xe7/0x160 Write of size 32 at addr ffff88810033fed0 by task kworker/0:1/11 Workqueue: mld mld_ifc_work Call Trace: <TASK> __build_flow_key.constprop.0 (net/ipv4/route.c:515) ip_rt_update_pmtu (net/ipv4/route.c:1073) iptunnel_xmit (net/ipv4/ip_tunnel_core.c:84) ip_tunnel_xmit (net/ipv4/ip_tunnel.c:847) gre_tap_xmit (net/ipv4/ip_gre.c:779) dev_hard_start_xmit (net/core/dev.c:3887) sch_direct_xmit (net/sched/sch_generic.c:347) __dev_queue_xmit (net/core/dev.c:4802) bond_dev_queue_xmit (drivers/net/bonding/bond_main.c:312) bond_xmit_broadcast (drivers/net/bonding/bond_main.c:5279) bond_start_xmit (drivers/net/bonding/bond_main.c:5530) dev_hard_start_xmit (net/core/dev.c:3887) __dev_queue_xmit (net/core/dev.c:4841) ip_finish_output2 (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:237) ip_output (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:438) iptunnel_xmit (net/ipv4/ip_tunnel_core.c:86) gre_tap_xmit (net/ipv4/ip_gre.c:779) dev_hard_start_xmit (net/core/dev.c:3887) sch_direct_xmit (net/sched/sch_generic.c:347) __dev_queue_xmit (net/core/dev.c:4802) bond_dev_queue_xmit (drivers/net/bonding/bond_main.c:312) bond_xmit_broadcast (drivers/net/bonding/bond_main.c:5279) bond_start_xmit (drivers/net/bonding/bond_main.c:5530) dev_hard_start_xmit (net/core/dev.c:3887) __dev_queue_xmit (net/core/dev.c:4841) ip_finish_output2 (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:237) ip_output (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:438) iptunnel_xmit (net/ipv4/ip_tunnel_core.c:86) ip_tunnel_xmit (net/ipv4/ip_tunnel.c:847) gre_tap_xmit (net/ipv4/ip_gre.c:779) dev_hard_start_xmit (net/core/dev.c:3887) sch_direct_xmit (net/sched/sch_generic.c:347) __dev_queue_xmit (net/core/dev.c:4802) bond_dev_queue_xmit (drivers/net/bonding/bond_main.c:312) bond_xmit_broadcast (drivers/net/bonding/bond_main.c:5279) bond_start_xmit (drivers/net/bonding/bond_main.c:5530) dev_hard_start_xmit (net/core/dev.c:3887) __dev_queue_xmit (net/core/dev.c:4841) mld_sendpack mld_ifc_work process_one_work worker_thread </TASK>
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | 2.6.35.9 to before 2.6.36 | 2.6.36 | Patch available | CNA |
| Linux | Linux | 2.6.37 and later | 6.6.160, 6.12.78, 6.18.19, 6.19.9, 7.0 | Patch available | CNA |
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 2.6.35.9 to before 2.6.36 Fixed in 2.6.36 Patch available CNA
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 2.6.37 and later Fixed in 6.6.160, 6.12.78, 6.18.19, 6.19.9, 7.0 Patch available CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 4
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 2.6.35.9 to before 2.6.36; 2.6.37 to before 6.12.78; 6.13 to before 6.18.19; 6.19 to before 6.19.9 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 rc1 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 rc2 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 rc3 | Vulnerable | Linux |
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 2.6.35.9 to before 2.6.36; 2.6.37 to before 6.12.78; 6.13 to before 6.18.19; 6.19 to before 6.19.9 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 rc1 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 rc2 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 rc3 Vulnerable ·Linux
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 2.6.36
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 6.6.160, 6.12.78, 6.18.19, 6.19.9, 7.0
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-23276
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-89g4-663g-prjh
- 2026-10-21 Fix available: Linux/[email protected], Linux/Linux@da5f0166cef3d4285ddbb1b638661263fc03ee92 · CNA
- 2026-10-21 1 new reference · CNA
- 2026-11-05 CISA SSVC decision points changed
References
Patch 4
More Linux Kernel vulnerabilities
- TI-2025-26358 tls: fix handling of zero-length records on the rx_list KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2026-38352 netfilter: bridge: make ebt_snat ARP rewrite writable KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2013-05264 The (1) get_user and (2) put_user API functions in the Linux kernel before 3.5.5 on the… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2022-00125 Integer overflow in kernel KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
- TI-2013-01864 The perf_swevent_init function in kernel/events/core.c in the Linux kernel before 3.8.9… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
- TI-2021-05514 Heap Out-Of-Bounds Write in Netfilter IP6T_SO_SET_REPLACE KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.3
Sources
- CVE-2026-23276 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-23276 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-89g4-663g-prjh · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-23276 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences