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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2025-39826

HIGH · 7.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-09-16
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.1.150 / 6.6.104 or later.
See remediation →
72/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click Patch available

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: rose: convert 'use' field to refcount_t The 'use' field in struct rose_neigh is used as a reference counter but lacks atomicity. This can lead to race conditions where a rose_neigh structure is freed while still being referenced by other code paths. For example, when rose_neigh->use becomes zero during an ioctl operation via rose_rt_ioctl(), the structure may be removed while its timer is still active, potentially causing use-after-free issues. This patch changes the type of 'use' from unsigned short to refcount_t and updates all code paths to use rose_neigh_hold() and rose_neigh_put() which operate reference counts atomically.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis
How this class of weakness works · CWE-416

Memory is used after it has been freed, so its contents — now potentially attacker-controlled — drive the program's behaviour. With careful heap grooming this becomes code execution. The fix requires disciplined ownership of memory and often a targeted rework of the object lifecycle.

General guidance for the use after free class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Linux KernelOperating system
Affected:>= 2.6.12.1, < 6.1.150>= 6.2, < 6.6.104>= 6.7, < 6.12.45>= 6.13, < 6.16.5= 2.6.12= 6.17
Debian LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 11.0

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
High
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 6.1.150 / 6.6.104 / 6.12.45 or later
Fixed in 6.1.1506.6.1046.12.45
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Linux Kernel 6.1.150+ / 6.6.104+ / 6.12.45+ / 6.16.5+ (choose the appropriate branch based on your current version)

  1. 1. Check the current running kernel version with: uname -r
  2. 2. Identify the appropriate fixed kernel version based on your current release branch (6.1.x -> upgrade to >=6.1.150, 6.2-6.6.x -> upgrade to >=6.6.104, 6.7-6.12.x -> upgrade to >=6.12.45, 6.13-6.16.x -> upgrade to >=6.16.5)
  3. 3. Update the system package repository: apt-get update (Debian) or equivalent for your distribution
  4. 4. Install the fixed kernel package: apt-get install linux-image-<version> or apt-get dist-upgrade
  5. 5. Reboot the system to load the fixed kernel: reboot
  6. 6. Verify the new kernel is running and the vulnerability is addressed: uname -r
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require rebuilding third-party kernel modules (e.g., proprietary drivers) and could introduce compatibility changes with existing system configurations

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

We can perform the upgrade in your staging environment and verify nothing breaks — typical engagement from $3,200. Get the upgrade done

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-39826 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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