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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2026-23125

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-02-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.10.249 / 5.15.199 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: sctp: move SCTP_CMD_ASSOC_SHKEY right after SCTP_CMD_PEER_INIT A null-ptr-deref was reported in the SCTP transmit path when SCTP-AUTH key initialization fails: ================================================================== KASAN: null-ptr-deref in range [0x0000000000000018-0x000000000000001f] CPU: 0 PID: 16 Comm: ksoftirqd/0 Tainted: G W 6.6.0 #2 RIP: 0010:sctp_packet_bundle_auth net/sctp/output.c:264 [inline] RIP: 0010:sctp_packet_append_chunk+0xb36/0x1260 net/sctp/output.c:401 Call Trace: sctp_packet_transmit_chunk+0x31/0x250 net/sctp/output.c:189 sctp_outq_flush_data+0xa29/0x26d0 net/sctp/outqueue.c:1111 sctp_outq_flush+0xc80/0x1240 net/sctp/outqueue.c:1217 sctp_cmd_interpreter.isra.0+0x19a5/0x62c0 net/sctp/sm_sideeffect.c:1787 sctp_side_effects net/sctp/sm_sideeffect.c:1198 [inline] sctp_do_sm+0x1a3/0x670 net/sctp/sm_sideeffect.c:1169 sctp_assoc_bh_rcv+0x33e/0x640 net/sctp/associola.c:1052 sctp_inq_push+0x1dd/0x280 net/sctp/inqueue.c:88 sctp_rcv+0x11ae/0x3100 net/sctp/input.c:243 sctp6_rcv+0x3d/0x60 net/sctp/ipv6.c:1127 The issue is triggered when sctp_auth_asoc_init_active_key() fails in sctp_sf_do_5_1C_ack() while processing an INIT_ACK. In this case, the command sequence is currently: - SCTP_CMD_PEER_INIT - SCTP_CMD_TIMER_STOP (T1_INIT) - SCTP_CMD_TIMER_START (T1_COOKIE) - SCTP_CMD_NEW_STATE (COOKIE_ECHOED) - SCTP_CMD_ASSOC_SHKEY - SCTP_CMD_GEN_COOKIE_ECHO If SCTP_CMD_ASSOC_SHKEY fails, asoc->shkey remains NULL, while asoc->peer.auth_capable and asoc->peer.peer_chunks have already been set by SCTP_CMD_PEER_INIT. This allows a DATA chunk with auth = 1 and shkey = NULL to be queued by sctp_datamsg_from_user(). Since command interpretation stops on failure, no COOKIE_ECHO should been sent via SCTP_CMD_GEN_COOKIE_ECHO. However, the T1_COOKIE timer has already been started, and it may enqueue a COOKIE_ECHO into the outqueue later. As a result, the DATA chunk can be transmitted together with the COOKIE_ECHO in sctp_outq_flush_data(), leading to the observed issue. Similar to the other places where it calls sctp_auth_asoc_init_active_key() right after sctp_process_init(), this patch moves the SCTP_CMD_ASSOC_SHKEY immediately after SCTP_CMD_PEER_INIT, before stopping T1_INIT and starting T1_COOKIE. This ensures that if shared key generation fails, authenticated DATA cannot be sent. It also allows the T1_INIT timer to retransmit INIT, giving the client another chance to process INIT_ACK and retry key setup.

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-476

The code follows a pointer that is null, crashing the process. An attacker who can reliably trigger it turns the crash into a denial of service. The fix is checking for null before use and handling the failure path gracefully.

General guidance for the null pointer dereference 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:>= 2.6.24, < 5.10.249>= 5.11, < 5.15.199>= 5.16, < 6.1.162>= 6.2, < 6.6.122>= 6.7, < 6.12.68>= 6.13, < 6.18.8= 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 5.10.249 / 5.15.199 / 6.1.162 or later
Fixed in 5.10.2495.15.1996.1.162
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to the latest stable kernel release in your current branch (5.10.249+, 5.15.199+, 6.1.162+, or 6.6.122+ depending on your branch)

  1. Identify the currently running Linux kernel version using `uname -r`
  2. Determine which version range your current kernel falls into (5.10.x, 5.11-5.15.x, 5.16-6.1.x, or 6.2-6.6.x)
  3. Upgrade the Linux kernel to a fixed version: for 5.10.x line upgrade to >= 5.10.249; for 5.11-5.15.x line upgrade to >= 5.15.199; for 5.16-6.1.x line upgrade to >= 6.1.162; for 6.2-6.6.x line upgrade to >= 6.6.122
  4. Reboot the system to apply the new kernel
  5. Verify the kernel version after reboot using `uname -r`
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require rebuilding out-of-tree kernel modules; ensure compatible drivers/modules are available before upgrading

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 $2,850. 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-2026-23125 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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