HighCVE-2026-53229

    Linux Kernel: Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime (CVE-2026-53229)

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

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    What is affected, what to do

    In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net/mlx5e: xsk: Fix DMA and xdp_frame leak on XDP_TX xmit failure In the XSK branch of mlx5e_xmit_xdp_buff(), when sq->xmit_xdp_frame() returns false (e.g. XDPSQ is full), the function returns without unmapping the DMA address or freeing the xdp_frame allocated by xdp_convert_zc_to_xdp_frame().

    Update Linux Kernel to version 6.1.191, Linux Kernel to version 6.6.160, Linux Kernel to version 6.12.94.

    Affected
    • Linux Kernel lt 5.3..6.1.191
    • Linux Kernel lt 6.2..6.6.160
    • Linux Kernel lt 6.7..6.12.94
    • Linux Kernel lt 6.13..6.18.36
    • Linux Kernel lt 6.19..7.0.13
    Fixed in
    • Linux Kernel 6.1.191
    • Linux Kernel 6.6.160
    • Linux Kernel 6.12.94
    • Linux Kernel 6.18.36
    • Linux Kernel 7.0.13
    • Linux Kernel 7.1

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

    Metrics

    7.5

    Priority

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

    Source: Vendor (CNA), CVSS v3

    7.5

    CVSS v3

    Severity High on the scale from 0 to 10.

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

    0.5 %

    EPSS score

    Low — model estimates < 1% exploitation likelihood.

    Source: FIRST EPSS, percentile 41.5

    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
    70.33 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
    7.5 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
    7.5
    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
    0.5 %
    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
    41.5
    High — this CVE ranks above the median of all CVEs scored today (rank ≥ 36%).
    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 · automatable · Technical impact: partial
    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-401

    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: net/mlx5e: xsk: Fix DMA and xdp_frame leak on XDP_TX xmit failure In the XSK branch of mlx5e_xmit_xdp_buff(), when sq->xmit_xdp_frame() returns false (e.g. XDPSQ is full), the function returns without unmapping the DMA address or freeing the xdp_frame allocated by xdp_convert_zc_to_xdp_frame(). The xdpi_fifo push only happens on success, so the completion path cannot recover these entries. With CONFIG_DMA_API_DEBUG=y, the leak surfaces on driver unbind: DMA-API: pci 0000:08:00.0: device driver has pending DMA allocations while released from device [count=1116] One of leaked entries details: [device address=0x000000010ffd7028] [size=1534 bytes] [mapped with DMA_TO_DEVICE] [mapped as phy] WARNING: kernel/dma/debug.c:881 at dma_debug_device_change+0x127/0x180 ... DMA-API: Mapped at: debug_dma_map_phys+0x4b/0xd0 dma_map_phys+0xfd/0x2d0 mlx5e_xdp_handle+0x5ae/0xac0 [mlx5_core] mlx5e_xsk_skb_from_cqe_mpwrq_linear+0xc4/0x170 [mlx5_core] mlx5e_handle_rx_cqe_mpwrq+0xc1/0x290 [mlx5_core] Add the missing unmap + xdp_return_frame, matching the cleanup already done in mlx5e_xdp_xmit(). has_frags is rejected earlier in this branch, so no per-frag unmap is needed.

    Source: Ubuntu Security Notices, BSI WID Portal, BSI CSAF, suse_csaf, cvelistv5, Microsoft Security Update Guide, 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 – < 6.12.94
    • 6.13 – < 6.18.36
    • —
    • 6.2 – < 6.6.160
    • 6.19 – < 7.0.13
    • 5.3 – < 6.1.191
    • 6.12.94
    • 6.18.36
    • 7.1
    • 6.6.160
    • 7.0.13
    • 6.1.191

    Vendors and products

    Affected operating systems

    Affected operating systems
    Linuxubuntulinuxnoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-awsnoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-aws-6.8jammy
    Linuxubuntulinux-aws-fipsnoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-azurenoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-azure-6.8jammy
    Linuxubuntulinux-azure-fdenoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-azure-fde-6.8jammy
    Linuxubuntulinux-azure-fipsnoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-fipsnoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-gcpnoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-gcp-6.8jammy
    Linuxubuntulinux-gcp-fipsnoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-gkenoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-gkeopnoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-ibmnoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-ibm-6.8jammy
    Linuxubuntulinux-lowlatencynoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-lowlatency-hwe-6.8jammy
    Linuxubuntulinux-nvidianoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-nvidia-6.8jammy
    Linuxubuntulinux-nvidia-lowlatencynoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-oraclenoble
    Linuxubuntulinux-realtimenoble

    Weakness classes (CWE)

    • CWE-401Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime

      Variant

      The product does not sufficiently track and release allocated memory after it has been used, making the memory unavailable for reallocation and reuse.

      Entry at MITRE CWE-401

    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-2026-53229.json">CVE-2026-53229</a>
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/bf0247d34d79d2740b3f1d6cc44dbd38ab2b169e

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

    2. 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-2026-53229.json">CVE-2026-53229</a>
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3bad189a31eb78575ea69f093e8ef5b7e3e8c832

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

    3. Record modifiedCISA ADP

      Weakness type: CWE-401

      Show the original change
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      Weakness type (CWE)added
      —
      CWE-401

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

    4. Record modifiedLinux

      Show 12 original changes
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0aabca726b43d833721034e97d99efcc8237b22a
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2789b74ae1f4b68333c9d5eec2f3354d07b16e61
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7b3eeba50fbc3b45f279037c29a87a90e8bac1e1
      Referenceadded
      —
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b69004f5a6ad32da84d8aa5b23b9c0caafe6252e
      Referenceremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0aabca726b43d833721034e97d99efcc8237b22a
      —
      Referenceremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2789b74ae1f4b68333c9d5eec2f3354d07b16e61
      —
      Referenceremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7b3eeba50fbc3b45f279037c29a87a90e8bac1e1
      —
      Referenceremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b69004f5a6ad32da84d8aa5b23b9c0caafe6252e
      —
      Reference typeremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0aabca726b43d833721034e97d99efcc8237b22a Types: Patch
      —
      Reference typeremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2789b74ae1f4b68333c9d5eec2f3354d07b16e61 Types: Patch
      —
      Reference typeremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7b3eeba50fbc3b45f279037c29a87a90e8bac1e1 Types: Patch
      —
      Reference typeremoved
      https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b69004f5a6ad32da84d8aa5b23b9c0caafe6252e Types: Patch
      —

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

    5. Record modifiedCISA ADP

      CISA assessment (SSVC): exploitation: none known, automatable: yes

      Show the original change
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      SSVC assessmentadded
      —
      {"id":"CVE-2026-53229","role":"CISA Coordinator","options":[{"exploitation":"none"},{"automatable":"yes"},{"technicalImpact":"partial"}],"version":"2.0.3","timestamp":"2026-10-16T15:27:20.784933Z"}

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

    Show one older change

    1. Initial analysis by NVDNVD

      Newly listed as affected:
      • Linux Kernel (6.13 – before 6.18.36; 6.19 – before 7.0.13; 5.3 – before 6.12.94; 7 individual versions)

      Weakness type: CWE-401

      Show 6 original changes
      Individual changes of this event as published by NVD
      TypeActionBeforeAfter
      Weakness type (CWE)added
      —
      CWE-401
      Product configurationadded
      —
      OR *cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.1:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.1:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.1:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.1:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 6.13 up to (excluding) 6.18.36 *cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 6.19 up to (excluding) 7.0.13 *cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.1:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.1:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.1:rc7:*:*:*:*:*:* *cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* versions from (including) 5.3 up to (excluding) 6.12.94
      Reference typeadded
      —
      kernel.org: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0aabca726b43d833721034e97d99efcc8237b22a Types: Patch
      Reference typeadded
      —
      kernel.org: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2789b74ae1f4b68333c9d5eec2f3354d07b16e61 Types: Patch
      Reference typeadded
      —
      kernel.org: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7b3eeba50fbc3b45f279037c29a87a90e8bac1e1 Types: Patch
      Reference typeadded
      —
      kernel.org: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b69004f5a6ad32da84d8aa5b23b9c0caafe6252e Types: Patch

      Source identifier: nvd@nist.gov

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