CVE-2026-52943: linux Use After Free
Vulnerability summary
CVE-2026-52943 is a high (CVSS 7.8) Use After Free vulnerability in linux. EPSS estimates a 0.25% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 15% of scored vulnerabilities.
Advisory lineage
Upstream 0 · Downstream 189 · Related 189Showing 100 of 189. Use Open JSON for the complete list.
Timeline
- 24-06-2026PublishedVulnerability first disclosed.
- 19-10-2026Last modifiedVulnerability information updated.
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: skbuff: fix missing zerocopy reference in pskb_carve helpers pskb_carve_inside_header() and pskb_carve_inside_nonlinear() both copy the old skb_shared_info header into a new buffer via memcpy(), which includes the destructor_arg pointer (uarg) for MSG_ZEROCOPY skbs. Neither function calls net_zcopy_get() for the new shinfo, creating an unaccounted holder: every skb_shared_info with destructor_arg set will call skb_zcopy_clear() once when freed, but the corresponding net_zcopy_get() was never called for the new copy. Repeated calls drive uarg->refcnt to zero prematurely, freeing ubuf_info_msgzc while TX skbs still hold live destructor_arg pointers. KASAN reports use-after-free on a freed ubuf_info_msgzc: BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in skb_release_data+0x77b/0x810 Read of size 8 at addr ffff88801574d3e8 by task poc/220 Call Trace: skb_release_data+0x77b/0x810 kfree_skb_list_reason+0x13e/0x610 skb_release_data+0x4cd/0x810 sk_skb_reason_drop+0xf3/0x340 skb_queue_purge_reason+0x282/0x440 rds_tcp_inc_free+0x1e/0x30 rds_recvmsg+0x354/0x1780 __sys_recvmsg+0xdf/0x180 Allocated by task 219: msg_zerocopy_realloc+0x157/0x7b0 tcp_sendmsg_locked+0x2892/0x3ba0 Freed by task 219: ip_recv_error+0x74a/0xb10 tcp_recvmsg+0x475/0x530 The skb consuming the late access still referenced the same uarg via shinfo->destructor_arg copied by pskb_carve_inside_nonlinear() without a refcount bump. This has been verified to be reliably exploitable: a working proof-of-concept achieves full root privilege escalation from an unprivileged local user on a default kernel configuration. The fix follows the pattern of pskb_expand_head() which has the same memcpy/cloned structure. For pskb_carve_inside_header(), net_zcopy_get() is placed after skb_orphan_frags() succeeds, so the orphan error path needs no cleanup. For pskb_carve_inside_nonlinear(), net_zcopy_get() is placed after all failure points and just before skb_release_data(), so no error path needs cleanup at all -- matching pskb_expand_head() more closely and avoiding the need for a balancing net_zcopy_put().
CVSS metrics
4 scores · 4 sources · 1 version- OSV · UbuntuEcosystem advisory · calculated7.8HighCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
- OSV · DebianEcosystem advisory · calculated7.8HighCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
- NVDNIST7.8HighCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS trend
Probability
0.25%
Chance of exploitation in the next 30 days
Percentile
15%
Versus all other CVEs
30-day change
+0.01 pp
From 0.24% on 19-09-2026
Known exploited
Compare KEV catalogsNot in any of the 3 tracked catalogs.
Public exploits
0 foundNo public exploits indexed.
Weaknesses
CWE · root cause- CWE-416Use After FreeThe product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory "belongs" to the code that operates on the new pointer.
- CWE-911Improper Update of Reference CountThe product uses a reference count to manage a resource, but it does not update or incorrectly updates the reference count.
Affected systems
Ubuntu166 products
- linuxAll versions (No fix recorded) | < 5.15.0-198.208 | < 6.8.0-146.146 | < 7.0.0-28.28
- linux-allwinner-5.19All versions (No fix recorded)
- linux-awsAll versions (No fix recorded) | < 5.15.0-1117.124 | < 6.8.0-1066.69 | < 7.0.0-1009.9
- linux-aws-5.0All versions (No fix recorded)
- linux-aws-5.11All versions (No fix recorded)
Linux2 products
- linux≥ 6fa01ccd883021105e9f8af7d04b9f156fa3494a, < 8dbed691e43a50903658130bde0fcb5abc425b37 | ≥ 6fa01ccd883021105e9f8af7d04b9f156fa3494a, < 9b40bdc2a3298225dffab8158208a0d8c6300578 | ≥ 6fa01ccd883021105e9f8af7d04b9f156fa3494a, < fd470f0a97b8e9a125f520265d2f3b088ffb5b8a | ≥ 6fa01ccd883021105e9f8af7d04b9f156fa3494a, < ceafb893b12f23331dcc5ff9587e643c3a40ee9f | ≥ 6fa01ccd883021105e9f8af7d04b9f156fa3494a, < 2e0e74c59b2761a414d9f48d7bee1e45220b2427 | ≥ 6fa01ccd883021105e9f8af7d04b9f156fa3494a, < 96a4713ae041cc85e712bac682cd2e644004d6c6 | ≥ 6fa01ccd883021105e9f8af7d04b9f156fa3494a, < 474d6c771d798bca84f0a140b611e36743511e18 | ≥ 6fa01ccd883021105e9f8af7d04b9f156fa3494a, < 98d0912e9f841e5529a5b89a972805f34cb1c69d | 4.7
- linux_kernel≥ 4.7, < 5.10.259 | ≥ 5.11, < 5.15.210 | ≥ 5.16, < 6.1.176 | ≥ 6.2, < 6.6.143 | ≥ 6.7, < 6.12.93 | ≥ 6.13, < 6.18.35 | ≥ 6.19, < 7.0.12 | 7.1:rc1 | 7.1:rc2 | 7.1:rc3 | 7.1:rc4 | 7.1:rc5
Debian1 product
- linux< 6.1.176-1 | < 6.12.94-1 | < 7.0.12-1
3 vendors · 169 products
References
43 linksShow all 43 references
- security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-52943.jsonX Sadp Csaf VexThird Party Advisory