ipv4: fix use-after-free in fib_nhc_update_mtu()
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 5 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ipv4: fix use-after-free in fib_nhc_update_mtu() fib_nhc_update_mtu() walks the nexthop exception table under RTNL, but RTNL does not serialize this walk with PMTU exception updates. The walk uses rcu_dereference_protected() with a constant true condition without holding fnhe_lock. The following interleaving can therefore occur: CPU 0 CPU 1 fib_nhc_update_mtu() update_or_create_fnhe() load fnhe spin_lock_bh(&fnhe_lock) fnhe_remove_oldest() unlink fnhe kfree_rcu(fnhe, rcu) <quiescent state> access fnhe after grace period KASAN reported: BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in fib_nhc_update_mtu+0x3df/0x410 Read of size 8 at addr ffff888107d49000 by task poc/90 Call Trace: fib_nhc_update_mtu+0x3df/0x410 fib_sync_mtu+0x7a/0xd0 fib_netdev_event+0x229/0x3f0 netif_set_mtu_ext+0x33a/0x570 dev_set_mtu+0x88/0x120 The same walk updates fnhe_pmtu and fnhe_mtu_locked. These fields form a pair and other writers serialize them with fnhe_lock. RCU alone prevents reclamation, but would still allow concurrent writers to leave a mixed pair. Walk the table under RCU and acquire fnhe_lock only while updating each exception. RCU keeps the current entry alive while the short critical section serializes its paired PMTU fields. This avoids holding the global lock while scanning all 2048 buckets for every nexthop.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- 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 | 3.16.62 to before 3.17; 4.4.162 to before 4.5; 4.9.134 to before 4.10; 4.14.77 to before 4.15; 4.18.15 to before 4.19 | 3.17, 4.5, 4.10, 4.15, 4.19 | Patch available | CNA |
| Linux | Linux | 4.19 and later | 5.10.265, 5.15.216, 6.1.183, 6.6.152, 6.12.104, 6.18.45, 7.1.9, 7.2 | Patch available | CNA |
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 3.16.62 to before 3.17; 4.4.162 to before 4.5; 4.9.134 to before 4.10; 4.14.77 to before 4.15; 4.18.15 to before 4.19 Fixed in 3.17, 4.5, 4.10, 4.15, 4.19 Patch available CNA
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 4.19 and later Fixed in 5.10.265, 5.15.216, 6.1.183, 6.6.152, 6.12.104, 6.18.45, 7.1.9, 7.2 Patch available CNA
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 3.17, 4.5, 4.10, 4.15, 4.19
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 5.10.265, 5.15.216, 6.1.183, 6.6.152, 6.12.104, 6.18.45, 7.1.9, 7.2
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 8 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet |
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-74656
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-4hv8-gc9j-4wjf
- 2026-10-18 CISA SSVC decision points changed
References
Other 8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/fd39e711866498ae94fcf9acf6f422a4f045b681
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e1e602d6b22d5cb1641c4459c487eb18bf569e0a
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e00f7d2b5f2540a3415a229c982af7a25ff6362e
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/dfe388da13aa784851e5ebbea90afbb099075761
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/5a28a4b22dde92f9d293b94236314b8d6181dc4a
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/63996ffc594d128ccec8fc0983f91effd2d3adc4
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ed503eaad62f20cdd5122d7c3078a648a99c8f16
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/bc5bde9ce3cc36502839dfe98e068f7303a50982
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Sources
- CVE-2026-74656 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-74656 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-4hv8-gc9j-4wjf · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-74656 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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