netfilter: nf_conntrack_sip: don't use simple_strtoul
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Denial of service
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 9 fixed, 4 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-476.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfilter: nf_conntrack_sip: don't use simple_strtoul Replace unsafe port parsing in epaddr_len(), ct_sip_parse_header_uri(), and ct_sip_parse_request() with a new sip_parse_port() helper that validates each digit against the buffer limit, eliminating the use of simple_strtoul() which assumes NUL-terminated strings. The previous code dereferenced pointers without bounds checks after sip_parse_addr() and relied on simple_strtoul() on non-NUL-terminated skb data. A port that reaches the buffer limit without a trailing character is also rejected as malformed. Also get rid of all simple_strtoul() usage in conntrack, prefer a stricter version instead. There are intentional changes: - Bail out if number is > UINT_MAX and indicate a failure, same for too long sequences. While we do accept 05535 as port 5535, we will not accept e.g. 'sip:10.0.0.1:005060'. While its syntactically valid under RFC 3261, we should restrict this to not waste cycles when presented with malformed packets with 64k '0' characters. - Force base 10 in ct_sip_parse_numerical_param(). This is used to fetch 'expire=' and 'rports='; both are expected to use base-10. - In nf_nat_sip.c, only accept the parsed value if its within the 1k-64k range. - epaddr_len now returns 0 if the port is invalid, as it already does for invalid ip addresses. This is intentional. nf_conntrack_sip performs lots of guesswork to find the right parts of the message to parse. Being stricter could break existing setups. Connection tracking helpers are designed to allow traffic to pass, not to block it. Based on an earlier patch from Jenny Guanni Qu <[email protected]>.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- Yes
- Technical impact
- Total
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 | 2.6.26 and later | 5.10.258, 5.15.209, 6.1.175, 6.6.141, 6.12.91, 6.18.33, 7.0.10, 7.1 | Patch available | CNA |
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 2.6.26 and later Fixed in 5.10.258, 5.15.209, 6.1.175, 6.6.141, 6.12.91, 6.18.33, 7.0.10, 7.1 Patch available CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 2
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 2.6.26 to before 5.10.258; 5.11 to before 5.15.209; 5.16 to before 6.1.175; 6.2 to before 6.6.141; 6.7 to before 6.12.91; 6.13 to before 6.18.33; 6.19 to before 7.0.10 | Vulnerable | Linux |
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.1:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.1 rc1 | Vulnerable | Linux |
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 2.6.26 to before 5.10.258; 5.11 to before 5.15.209; 5.16 to before 6.1.175; 6.2 to before 6.6.141; 6.7 to before 6.12.91; 6.13 to before 6.18.33; 6.19 to before 7.0.10 Vulnerable ·Linux
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.1:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.1 rc1 Vulnerable ·Linux
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 5.10.258, 5.15.209, 6.1.175, 6.6.141, 6.12.91, 6.18.33, 7.0.10, 7.1
Red Hat 3 advisories
- RHSA-2026:76739 Released 2026-10-08 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) kernel-64k-debug-devel-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-debug-devel-matched-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-devel-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8 +12
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) kernel-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-core-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8 +28
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9) kernel-tools-libs-devel-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8, libperf-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-64k-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-64k-core-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8 +21
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-core-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-debug-5.14.0-687.55.1.el9_8 +9
- RHSA-2026:66325 Released 2026-09-10 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 8) bpftool-4.18.0-553.162.1.el8_10, kernel-4.18.0-553.162.1.el8_10, kernel-abi-stablelists-4.18.0-553.162.1.el8_10 +19
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux CRB (v. 8) kernel-tools-libs-devel-4.18.0-553.162.1.el8_10
- RHSA-2026:66324 Released 2026-09-10 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel-rt security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux NFV (v. 8) kernel-rt-4.18.0-553.162.1.rt7.503.el8_10, kernel-rt-core-4.18.0-553.162.1.rt7.503.el8_10, kernel-rt-debug-4.18.0-553.162.1.rt7.503.el8_10 +9
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux RT (v. 8) kernel-rt-4.18.0-553.162.1.rt7.503.el8_10, kernel-rt-core-4.18.0-553.162.1.rt7.503.el8_10, kernel-rt-debug-4.18.0-553.162.1.rt7.503.el8_10 +7
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 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:76739 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:66325 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:76739 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux CRB (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:66325 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:76739 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux NFV (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:66324 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux RT (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:66324 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:76739 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:76739 |
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-52986
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-p6jx-f9x6-6955
- 2026-10-09 Fix available: RHSA-2026:76739 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-09 Fix available: Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9), Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9), Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9) +2 · Red Hat
- 2026-10-16 CISA SSVC decision points changed
- 2026-10-19 Weakness changed · CISA ADP
- 2026-10-25 EPSS moved to the 50th–90th percentile
References
Patch 8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8cd0358379570003659186706e077929d6930c40
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9c6afcb1c3cbb2c0da65b8515ac14d7273872f84
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b3264c977e79d8a25778d4fd11520f00fea1329c
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ea2ecd29b8f4433e52607192ca91084f95787ca0
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9f69c323ae0ab517e595c2cc74e0ae0d9d085611
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7df9863bf538a626e8a684e59cb2c43eac0ef3c8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/523762e3b6933fff81f01dfa3c60c0774044cdab
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8cf6809cddcbe301aedfc6b51bcd4944d45795f6
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- TI-2021-05514 Heap Out-Of-Bounds Write in Netfilter IP6T_SO_SET_REPLACE KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.3
Sources
- CVE-2026-52986 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-52986 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-p6jx-f9x6-6955 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-52986 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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