HighCVE-2026-53009

    Linux Kernel: Use After Free (CVE-2026-53009)

    Published Last modified Sources: SUSE, BSI, Ubuntu, Red Hat, Msrc Update Guide, CVE.org

    What is affected, what to do

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ice: fix double-free of tx_buf skb If ice_tso() or ice_tx_csum() fail, the error path in ice_xmit_frame_ring() frees the skb, but the 'first' tx_buf still points to it and is marked as valid (ICE_TX_BUF_SKB). 'next_to_use' remains unchanged, so the potential problem will likely fix itself when the next packet is transmitted and the tx_buf gets overwritten. But if there is no next packet and the interface is brought down instead, ice_clean_tx_ring() -> ice_unmap_and_free_tx_buf() will find the tx_buf and free the skb for the second time.

    Update Linux Kernel to version 6.1.191, Linux Kernel to version 6.6.160, Linux Kernel to version 6.12.114.

    Affected
    • Linux Kernel lt 4.17..6.1.191
    • Linux Kernel lt 6.2..6.6.160
    • Linux Kernel lt 6.7..6.12.114
    • Linux Kernel lt 6.13..6.18.57
    • Linux Kernel lt 6.19..7.0.10
    Fixed in
    • Linux Kernel 6.1.191
    • Linux Kernel 6.6.160
    • Linux Kernel 6.12.114
    • Linux Kernel 6.18.57
    • Linux Kernel 7.0.10
    • Linux Kernel 7.1

    Not sure whether and how you are affected? Ask a question about this vulnerability

    Metrics

    7.8

    Priority

    XIEM Effective CVSS: highest available CVSS rating from NVD and vendor data.

    Source: NVD, CVSS v3

    7.8

    CVSS v3

    Severity High on the scale from 0 to 10.

    Source: SUSE, BSI, Ubuntu, Red Hat, Msrc Update Guide, CVE.org

    0.2 %

    EPSS score

    Low — model estimates < 1% exploitation likelihood.

    Source: FIRST EPSS, percentile 7.8

    Show all metrics
    Severity
    High
    Priority (0–325)

    The priority score is a consolidated metric that condenses several individual signals into a single, action-guiding ranking: technical severity (CVSS), exploitation likelihood (EPSS), known-exploited status (KEV) and the context of the affected asset. The aim is to answer the only truly important question in vulnerability management: what first?

    Read in glossary
    58.80 Methodology
    Exploit maturity

    An exploit is code or a technique that specifically uses a concrete vulnerability to force unintended behaviour — such as executing code or escalating privileges. It is the tool that turns a theoretical flaw into a practical attack.

    Read in glossary
    no public PoC known
    XIEM Effective CVSS

    XIEM® is the tiered managed-security operating model from NEOSEC and a registered trademark of NEOSEC GmbH. It extends classic SIEM — the central collection, normalisation and correlation of security-relevant events — with endpoint forensics, network visibility and deception technology, and consolidates them into three building tiers: Sentry, Orchestrate and Command.

    Read in glossary
    7.8 Methodology
    CVSS v3

    CVSS is the globally established, open standard for assessing the technical severity of a vulnerability on a scale from 0 to 10. It describes how easily a flaw can be exploited and what damage it can cause — but not how likely its actual exploitation is. CVSS and the complementary EPSS deliberately answer different questions.

    Read in glossary
    7.8
    EPSS score

    The EPSS score is the absolute model output for an individual vulnerability: the estimated probability of real-world exploitation within the next 30 days, expressed as a value between 0 and 1 (i.e. 0 % to 100 %). A score of 0.42 means „the model estimates a 42 % chance of real-world exploitation within 30 days“.

    Read in glossary
    0.2 %
    Low — model estimates < 1% exploitation likelihood.
    EPSS percentile

    The EPSS percentile is the relative position of a vulnerability within all EPSS-scored CVEs, expressed as a value between 0 and 1. A percentile of 0.90 means „this CVE has a higher EPSS score than 90 % of all other scored CVEs“. Unlike the EPSS score, it is not a probability — but a positioning within a ranking.

    Read in glossary
    7.8
    Low — this CVE sits in the lower 10% of all CVEs scored today.
    KEV status

    The KEV catalogue is a list maintained by the US authority CISA of vulnerabilities for which active exploitation in the wild has been confirmed. It answers not the question „how severe?“ but „is it already being attacked?“ — thereby sharply prioritising patching.

    Read in glossary
    —
    Published
    CISA assessment (SSVC)
    Exploitation: none known · not automatable · Technical impact: total
    Source: CISA Vulnrichment, as of 16 October 2026
    CWE

    CWE is a catalogue of typical weakness types in software and hardware — such as flawed input validation, unsafe memory handling or poor authentication. Where a CVE names a concrete vulnerability in a concrete product, a CWE describes the underlying class of defect.

    Read in glossary
    CWE-416

    Detection rules

    No NEOSEC detection rule is available for this vulnerability yet.

    Classification under NIS2 and CRA

    Rule-based classification from exploitation status and severity. It does not replace a case-by-case assessment.

    NIS2

    NIS2 is EU Directive (EU) 2022/2555 to raise the level of cybersecurity across the Union. It substantially broadens obligations compared with the first NIS directive: more sectors, mandatory risk management, staged reporting duties and personal accountability of senior management.

    Read in glossary
    High technical severity: assess and remediate the vulnerability in vulnerability handling under Art. 21(2)(e) NIS2 and document the decision.
    CRA

    The CRA is EU Regulation (EU) 2024/2847 setting horizontal cybersecurity requirements for „products with digital elements“ — from industrial controllers and software to connected consumer devices. For the first time manufacturers must ensure security across the entire product lifecycle, handle vulnerabilities and provide security updates.

    Read in glossary
    From 11.12.2027, Annex I Part II CRA requires manufacturers of affected products with digital elements to handle vulnerabilities without delay and provide security updates.
    ISO/IEC 27001

    ISO/IEC 27001 is the internationally leading standard for an information security management system (ISMS). It describes a risk-based, process-oriented framework to systematically plan, implement, review and improve information security.

    Read in glossary
    Control A.8.8, management of technical vulnerabilities: assess relevance to your systems, plan remediation and keep evidence.

    Description

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ice: fix double-free of tx_buf skb If ice_tso() or ice_tx_csum() fail, the error path in ice_xmit_frame_ring() frees the skb, but the 'first' tx_buf still points to it and is marked as valid (ICE_TX_BUF_SKB). 'next_to_use' remains unchanged, so the potential problem will likely fix itself when the next packet is transmitted and the tx_buf gets overwritten. But if there is no next packet and the interface is brought down instead, ice_clean_tx_ring() -> ice_unmap_and_free_tx_buf() will find the tx_buf and free the skb for the second time. The fix is to reset the tx_buf type to ICE_TX_BUF_EMPTY in the error path, so that ice_unmap_and_free_tx_buf(). Move the initialization of 'first' up, to ensure it's already valid in case we hit the linearization error path. The bug was spotted by AI while I had it looking for something else. It also proposed an initial version of the patch. I reproduced the bug and tested the fix by adding code to inject failures, on a build with KASAN. I looked for similar bugs in related Intel drivers and did not find any.

    Source: suse_csaf, BSI WID Portal, BSI CSAF, Ubuntu Security Notices, redhat_csaf, Microsoft Security Update Guide, cvelistv5, NVD (NIST), CVE.org (MITRE)

    Affected products

    The following versions are affected. Older releases of the same product line are also vulnerable unless stated otherwise.

    Affected products
    Affected versionsFixed in
    LinuxLinux
    • 6.7 – < 6.12.114
    • 4.17 – < 6.1.191
    • 6.13 – < 6.18.57
    • —
    • 6.2 – < 6.6.160
    • 6.19 – < 7.0.10
    • 6.12.114
    • 6.1.191
    • 6.18.57
    • 7.1
    • 6.6.160
    • 7.0.10
    IBMDataPower Gateway
    • < 11.0.0.3
    • < 10.6.0.11
    • < 10.5.0.23
    • 11.0.0.3
    • 10.6.0.11
    • 10.5.0.23
    IBMQRadar SIEM
    • < 7.6.0.3
    • <7.5.0 UP16 IF01
    • 7.6.0.3
    • —

    Vendors and products

    Affected operating systems

    Affected operating systems
    Linuxredhatenterprise_linux10.0
    Linuxredhatenterprise_linux7.0
    Linuxredhatenterprise_linux8.0
    Linuxredhatenterprise_linux9.0
    Linuxlinuxlinux_kernel—

    Weakness classes (CWE)

    • CWE-416Use After Free

      Variant

      The 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.

      Entry at MITRE CWE-416

    References & sources

    Changes to this CVE

    Who changed this CVE and when: NVD (analysis, affected products, CVSS), the CVE publisher (CNA) and additional providers such as CISA (ADP).

    1. Record modifiedLinux

      Show 2 original changes
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      Affected versions (publisher)added
      —
      Affected value modified. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/53xxx/CVE-2026-53009.json">CVE-2026-53009</a>
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/aa30e355ee951e804cbc9ff3d5de429ec850eccb

      Source identifier: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

    2. Record modifiedLinux

      Show 3 original changes
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      Affected versions (publisher)added
      —
      Affected value modified. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/53xxx/CVE-2026-53009.json">CVE-2026-53009</a>
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/359906450690a1d70545220bde82ba74f3fd80f8
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/eb6cf492ae991e40e1e5b2d3f32ec06e9cc678db

      Source identifier: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

    3. Record modifiedCISA ADP

      Weakness type: CWE-416

      Show the original change
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      Weakness type (CWE)added
      —
      CWE-416

      Source identifier: 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

    4. Record modifiedCISA ADP

      CISA assessment (SSVC): exploitation: none known, automatable: no

      Show the original change
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      SSVC assessmentadded
      —
      {"id":"CVE-2026-53009","role":"CISA Coordinator","options":[{"exploitation":"none"},{"automatable":"no"},{"technicalImpact":"total"}],"version":"2.0.3","timestamp":"2026-10-16T15:24:39.029257Z"}

      Source identifier: 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

    5. Record modifiedLinux

      Show 2 original changes
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      Affected versions (publisher)added
      —
      Affected value modified. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/53xxx/CVE-2026-53009.json">CVE-2026-53009</a>
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/910e498613d5bf4cbe5f298c2613666c38679fab

      Source identifier: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

    Show 4 older changes

    1. Record modifiedLinux

      Show 6 original changes
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1a303baa715e6b78d6a406aaf335f87ff35acfcd
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4c08fc2119ef0281cfa2cee007acf0a251be55f2
      Referenceremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1a303baa715e6b78d6a406aaf335f87ff35acfcd
      —
      Referenceremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4c08fc2119ef0281cfa2cee007acf0a251be55f2
      —
      Reference typeremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1a303baa715e6b78d6a406aaf335f87ff35acfcd Types: Patch
      —
      Reference typeremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4c08fc2119ef0281cfa2cee007acf0a251be55f2 Types: Patch
      —

      Source identifier: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

    2. Record modifiedRed Hat ADP

      Show 18 original changes
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      Affected versions (publisher)added
      —
      Affected value modified. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/53xxx/CVE-2026-53009.json">CVE-2026-53009</a>
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:42919
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:54246
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:54247
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:65711
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:65712
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-53009
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2492390
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-53009.json
      Referenceremoved
      https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:42919
      —
      Referenceremoved
      https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:54246
      —
      Referenceremoved
      https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:54247
      —
      Referenceremoved
      https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-53009
      —
      Referenceremoved
      https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2492390
      —
      Referenceremoved
      https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-53009.json
      —
      Reference typeremoved
      https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-53009 Types: Third Party Advisory
      —
      Reference typeremoved
      https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2492390 Types: Third Party Advisory
      —
      Reference typeremoved
      https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-53009.json Types: Third Party Advisory
      —

      Source identifier: 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c

    3. Record modifiedRed Hat ADP

      Show 2 original changes
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2026:42919
      Affected versions (publisher)changed
      Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 (+5)
      Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 (+5)

      Source identifier: 0b0ca135-0b70-47e7-9f44-1890c2a1c46c

    4. ReceivedLinux

      Description added or changed

      Show 4 original changes
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      Affected versions (publisher)added
      —
      Linux, Linux
      Descriptionadded
      —
      In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ice: fix double-free of tx_buf skb If ice_tso() or ice_tx_csum() fail, the error path in ice_xmit_frame_ring() frees the skb, but the 'first' tx_buf still points to it and is marked as valid (ICE_TX_BUF_SKB). 'next_to_use' remains unchanged, so the potential problem will likely fix itself when the next packet is transmitted and the tx_buf gets overwritten. But if there is no next packet and the interface is brought down instead, ice_clean_tx_ring() -> ice_unmap_and_free_tx_buf() will find the tx_buf and free the skb for the second time. The fix is to reset the tx_buf type to ICE_TX_BUF_EMPTY in the error path, so that ice_unmap_and_free_tx_buf(). Move the initialization of 'first' up, to ensure it's already valid in case we hit the linearization error path. The bug was spotted by AI while I had it looking for something else. It also proposed an initial version of the patch. I reproduced the bug and tested the fix by adding code to inject failures, on a build with KASAN. I looked for similar bugs in related Intel drivers and did not find any.
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1a303baa715e6b78d6a406aaf335f87ff35acfcd
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4c08fc2119ef0281cfa2cee007acf0a251be55f2

      Source identifier: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

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