In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
virtio_net: Fix UAF on dst_ops when IFF_XMIT_DST_RELEASE is cleared and napi_tx is false
A UAF issue occurs when the virtio_net driver is configured with napi_tx=N
and the device's IFF_XMIT_DST_RELEASE flag is cleared
(e.g., during the configuration of tc route filter rules).
When IFF_XMIT_DST_RELEASE is removed from the net_device, the network stack
expects the driver to hold the reference to skb->dst until the packet
is fully transmitted and freed. In virtio_net with napi_tx=N,
skbs may remain in the virtio transmit ring for an extended period.
If the network namespace is destroyed while these skbs are still pending,
the corresponding dst_ops structure has freed. When a subsequent packet
is transmitted, free_old_xmit() is triggered to clean up old skbs.
It then calls dst_release() on the skb associated with the stale dst_entry.
Since the dst_ops (referenced by the dst_entry) has already been freed,
a UAF kernel paging request occurs.
fix it by adds skb_dst_drop(skb) in start_xmit to explicitly release
the dst reference before the skb is queued in virtio_net.
Call Trace:
Unable to handle kernel paging request at virtual address ffff80007e150000
CPU: 2 UID: 0 PID: 6236 Comm: ping Kdump: loaded Not tainted 7.0.0-rc1+ #6 PREEMPT
...
percpu_counter_add_batch+0x3c/0x158 lib/percpu_counter.c:98 (P)
dst_release+0xe0/0x110 net/core/dst.c:177
skb_release_head_state+0xe8/0x108 net/core/skbuff.c:1177
sk_skb_reason_drop+0x54/0x2d8 net/core/skbuff.c:1255
dev_kfree_skb_any_reason+0x64/0x78 net/core/dev.c:3469
napi_consume_skb+0x1c4/0x3a0 net/core/skbuff.c:1527
__free_old_xmit+0x164/0x230 drivers/net/virtio_net.c:611 [virtio_net]
free_old_xmit drivers/net/virtio_net.c:1081 [virtio_net]
start_xmit+0x7c/0x530 drivers/net/virtio_net.c:3329 [virtio_net]
...
Reproduction Steps:
NETDEV="enp3s0"
config_qdisc_route_filter() {
tc qdisc del dev $NETDEV root
tc qdisc add dev $NETDEV root handle 1: prio
tc filter add dev $NETDEV parent 1:0 \
protocol ip prio 100 route to 100 flowid 1:1
ip route add 192.168.1.100/32 dev $NETDEV realm 100
}
test_ns() {
ip netns add testns
ip link set $NETDEV netns testns
ip netns exec testns ifconfig $NETDEV 10.0.32.46/24
ip netns exec testns ping -c 1 10.0.32.1
ip netns del testns
}
config_qdisc_route_filter
test_ns
sleep 2
test_ns
What the EG score is made of (scorer v4.0: the three questions the 0–10 score mixes, published apart · methodology)
The EG score (7.8): severity, escalated by confirmed exploitation. This CVE's 7.8 is its impact severity (EG Severity), not escalated.
- EG Severity
- 7.8 HIGHCVSS-B, impact only: no KEV listing, EPSS or EG-KEV tier raises it.GitHub Security Advisory CVSS
- EG Likelihood
- 0.2% within 30 daysSource: FIRST EPSS (model v2026.06.15, score date 2026-10-19). FIRST's exploitation probability, not an EchelonGraph model.
- Confirmed exploitation
- None on record (CISA KEV, EG-KEV Tier 1)Reported apart from the likelihood: an observed fact, not a probability.
- EG Priority
- SSVC Track at medium mission impactTrack at low or medium mission impact; Track* at high (mission-essential systems).CISA BOD 26-04: 14 days if the affected system is publicly exposed; Fix on system upgrade if it is not.Each input and its source: the SSVC and BOD 26-04 blocks below.
SSVC (CISA's decision table, applied by EchelonGraph)Track at low or medium mission impact; Track* at high (mission-essential systems).
A fix is available. Apply it within your standard update timelines.
Exploitation none (CISA Vulnrichment) · Automatable no (CISA Vulnrichment) · Technical impact total (CISA Vulnrichment). All three are CISA's SSVC values (Vulnrichment). EchelonGraph applied CISA's decision table to them; CISA publishes SSVC inputs and the table, not a decision for each CVE. Mission impact is CISA's Mission & Well-being decision point, and only you can judge it. CISA's table makes it high when Mission Prevalence is Essential — the vulnerable component "directly provides capabilities that constitute at least one MEF for at least one entity" (MEF: mission essential function) — or when Public Well-Being Impact is Irreversible: "multiple fatalities are likely", the cyber-physical system "is likely lost or destroyed", "extreme or serious externalities" are imposed on other parties, or social systems such as elections or the financial grid "are destabilized and potentially collapse". CISA's decision table
BOD 26-04 (CISA's remediation timeline, Table 1)14 days if the affected system is publicly exposed; Fix on system upgrade if it is not.
In CISA KEV no (CISA's KEV catalog) · Automatable no (CISA Vulnrichment) · Technical impact total (CISA Vulnrichment). Whether your system is publicly exposed is yours to answer. BOD 26-04 binds US Federal Civilian Executive Branch agencies; for anyone else it is CISA's published timeline, a reference rather than an obligation. The directive · how EchelonGraph applies it