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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2026-23277

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-03-20
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.10.253 / 5.15.203 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: net/sched: teql: fix NULL pointer dereference in iptunnel_xmit on TEQL slave xmit teql_master_xmit() calls netdev_start_xmit(skb, slave) to transmit through slave devices, but does not update skb->dev to the slave device beforehand. When a gretap tunnel is a TEQL slave, the transmit path reaches iptunnel_xmit() which saves dev = skb->dev (still pointing to teql0 master) and later calls iptunnel_xmit_stats(dev, pkt_len). This function does: get_cpu_ptr(dev->tstats) Since teql_master_setup() does not set dev->pcpu_stat_type to NETDEV_PCPU_STAT_TSTATS, the core network stack never allocates tstats for teql0, so dev->tstats is NULL. get_cpu_ptr(NULL) computes NULL + __per_cpu_offset[cpu], resulting in a page fault. BUG: unable to handle page fault for address: ffff8880e6659018 #PF: supervisor write access in kernel mode #PF: error_code(0x0002) - not-present page PGD 68bc067 P4D 68bc067 PUD 0 Oops: Oops: 0002 [#1] SMP KASAN PTI RIP: 0010:iptunnel_xmit (./include/net/ip_tunnels.h:664 net/ipv4/ip_tunnel_core.c:89) Call Trace: <TASK> ip_tunnel_xmit (net/ipv4/ip_tunnel.c:847) __gre_xmit (net/ipv4/ip_gre.c:478) gre_tap_xmit (net/ipv4/ip_gre.c:779) teql_master_xmit (net/sched/sch_teql.c:319) dev_hard_start_xmit (net/core/dev.c:3887) sch_direct_xmit (net/sched/sch_generic.c:347) __dev_queue_xmit (net/core/dev.c:4802) neigh_direct_output (net/core/neighbour.c:1660) ip_finish_output2 (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:237) __ip_finish_output.part.0 (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:315) ip_mc_output (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:369) ip_send_skb (net/ipv4/ip_output.c:1508) udp_send_skb (net/ipv4/udp.c:1195) udp_sendmsg (net/ipv4/udp.c:1485) inet_sendmsg (net/ipv4/af_inet.c:859) __sys_sendto (net/socket.c:2206) Fix this by setting skb->dev = slave before calling netdev_start_xmit(), so that tunnel xmit functions see the correct slave device with properly allocated tstats.

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:>= 4.5, < 5.10.253>= 5.11, < 5.15.203>= 5.16, < 6.1.167>= 6.2, < 6.6.130>= 6.7, < 6.12.78>= 6.13, < 6.18.19>= 6.19, < 6.19.9= 7.0

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
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 5.10.253 / 5.15.203 / 6.1.167 or later
Fixed in 5.10.2535.15.2036.1.167
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Linux kernel 5.10.253 / 5.15.203 / 6.1.167 / 6.6.130 or later (depending on which major version branch you are on)

  1. 1. Identify the currently running Linux kernel version using `uname -r`
  2. 2. Determine which affected version range your kernel falls into (4.5-5.10.252, 5.11-5.15.202, 5.16-6.1.166, or 6.2-6.6.129)
  3. 3. Upgrade the Linux kernel to a version with the fix applied: 5.10.253 or later for 5.10.x, 5.15.203 or later for 5.15.x, 6.1.167 or later for 6.1.x, or 6.6.130 or later for 6.6.x
  4. 4. For distribution kernels (e.g., Ubuntu, RHEL, Debian), install the corresponding distribution-specific kernel package that includes this fix
  5. 5. Reboot the system to load the patched kernel
  6. 6. Verify the fix is applied by checking the kernel version with `uname -r` and confirming TEQL functionality works correctly
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require system reboot and could introduce compatibility changes with custom modules or drivers; test in staging environment first

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

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-23277 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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