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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2025-71088

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-01-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.1.160 / 6.6.120 or later.
See remediation →
57/100
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: mptcp: fallback earlier on simult connection Syzkaller reports a simult-connect race leading to inconsistent fallback status: WARNING: CPU: 3 PID: 33 at net/mptcp/subflow.c:1515 subflow_data_ready+0x40b/0x7c0 net/mptcp/subflow.c:1515 Modules linked in: CPU: 3 UID: 0 PID: 33 Comm: ksoftirqd/3 Not tainted syzkaller #0 PREEMPT(full) Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), BIOS 1.16.3-debian-1.16.3-2~bpo12+1 04/01/2014 RIP: 0010:subflow_data_ready+0x40b/0x7c0 net/mptcp/subflow.c:1515 Code: 89 ee e8 78 61 3c f6 40 84 ed 75 21 e8 8e 66 3c f6 44 89 fe bf 07 00 00 00 e8 c1 61 3c f6 41 83 ff 07 74 09 e8 76 66 3c f6 90 <0f> 0b 90 e8 6d 66 3c f6 48 89 df e8 e5 ad ff ff 31 ff 89 c5 89 c6 RSP: 0018:ffffc900006cf338 EFLAGS: 00010246 RAX: 0000000000000000 RBX: ffff888031acd100 RCX: ffffffff8b7f2abf RDX: ffff88801e6ea440 RSI: ffffffff8b7f2aca RDI: 0000000000000005 RBP: 0000000000000000 R08: 0000000000000005 R09: 0000000000000007 R10: 0000000000000004 R11: 0000000000002c10 R12: ffff88802ba69900 R13: 1ffff920000d9e67 R14: ffff888046f81800 R15: 0000000000000004 FS: 0000000000000000(0000) GS:ffff8880d69bc000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 CR2: 0000560fc0ca1670 CR3: 0000000032c3a000 CR4: 0000000000352ef0 Call Trace: <TASK> tcp_data_queue+0x13b0/0x4f90 net/ipv4/tcp_input.c:5197 tcp_rcv_state_process+0xfdf/0x4ec0 net/ipv4/tcp_input.c:6922 tcp_v6_do_rcv+0x492/0x1740 net/ipv6/tcp_ipv6.c:1672 tcp_v6_rcv+0x2976/0x41e0 net/ipv6/tcp_ipv6.c:1918 ip6_protocol_deliver_rcu+0x188/0x1520 net/ipv6/ip6_input.c:438 ip6_input_finish+0x1e4/0x4b0 net/ipv6/ip6_input.c:489 NF_HOOK include/linux/netfilter.h:318 [inline] NF_HOOK include/linux/netfilter.h:312 [inline] ip6_input+0x105/0x2f0 net/ipv6/ip6_input.c:500 dst_input include/net/dst.h:471 [inline] ip6_rcv_finish net/ipv6/ip6_input.c:79 [inline] NF_HOOK include/linux/netfilter.h:318 [inline] NF_HOOK include/linux/netfilter.h:312 [inline] ipv6_rcv+0x264/0x650 net/ipv6/ip6_input.c:311 __netif_receive_skb_one_core+0x12d/0x1e0 net/core/dev.c:5979 __netif_receive_skb+0x1d/0x160 net/core/dev.c:6092 process_backlog+0x442/0x15e0 net/core/dev.c:6444 __napi_poll.constprop.0+0xba/0x550 net/core/dev.c:7494 napi_poll net/core/dev.c:7557 [inline] net_rx_action+0xa9f/0xfe0 net/core/dev.c:7684 handle_softirqs+0x216/0x8e0 kernel/softirq.c:579 run_ksoftirqd kernel/softirq.c:968 [inline] run_ksoftirqd+0x3a/0x60 kernel/softirq.c:960 smpboot_thread_fn+0x3f7/0xae0 kernel/smpboot.c:160 kthread+0x3c2/0x780 kernel/kthread.c:463 ret_from_fork+0x5d7/0x6f0 arch/x86/kernel/process.c:148 ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30 arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:245 </TASK> The TCP subflow can process the simult-connect syn-ack packet after transitioning to TCP_FIN1 state, bypassing the MPTCP fallback check, as the sk_state_change() callback is not invoked for * -> FIN_WAIT1 transitions. That will move the msk socket to an inconsistent status and the next incoming data will hit the reported splat. Close the race moving the simult-fallback check at the earliest possible stage - that is at syn-ack generation time. About the fixes tags: [2] was supposed to also fix this issue introduced by [3]. [1] is required as a dependence: it was not explicitly marked as a fix, but it is one and it has already been backported before [3]. In other words, this commit should be backported up to [3], including [2] and [1] if that's not already there.

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

A detailed technical summary for this CVE is being prepared.

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:>= 6.1.110, < 6.1.160>= 6.2.1, < 6.6.120>= 6.7, < 6.12.65>= 6.13, < 6.18.4= 6.2= 6.19

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
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 6.1.160 / 6.6.120 / 6.12.65 or later
Fixed in 6.1.1606.6.1206.12.65
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Linux Kernel 6.1.160 / 6.6.120 / 6.12.65 / 6.18.4 (or later stable releases)

  1. Identify the currently running kernel version using `uname -r`
  2. Determine which version range your current kernel falls into from the affected versions: 6.1.110-6.1.159, 6.2.1-6.6.119, 6.7-6.12.64, or 6.13-6.18.3
  3. Upgrade to the fixed kernel version: 6.1.160, 6.6.120, 6.12.65, or 6.18.4 (or later stable release)
  4. Reboot the system to apply the new kernel
  5. Verify the fix is applied by checking `uname -r` shows a version >= the fixed version for your branch
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require system reboot and could have compatibility implications with custom kernel modules or specific hardware drivers

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 $1,600. 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

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Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-71088 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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