Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2026-23392

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-03-25
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.1.167 / 6.6.130 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
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: netfilter: nf_tables: release flowtable after rcu grace period on error Call synchronize_rcu() after unregistering the hooks from error path, since a hook that already refers to this flowtable can be already registered, exposing this flowtable to packet path and nfnetlink_hook control plane. This error path is rare, it should only happen by reaching the maximum number hooks or by failing to set up to hardware offload, just call synchronize_rcu(). There is a check for already used device hooks by different flowtable that could result in EEXIST at this late stage. The hook parser can be updated to perform this check earlier to this error path really becomes rarely exercised. Uncovered by KASAN reported as use-after-free from nfnetlink_hook path when dumping hooks.

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:>= 4.16.1, < 6.1.167>= 6.2, < 6.6.130>= 6.7, < 6.12.78>= 6.13, < 6.18.20>= 6.19, < 6.19.10= 4.16= 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
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/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 6.1.167 / 6.6.130 / 6.12.78 or later
Fixed in 6.1.1676.6.1306.12.78
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to kernel 6.1.167 (or later 6.1.x), 6.6.130 (or later 6.2-6.6.x), 6.12.78 (or later 6.7-6.12.x), or 6.18.20 (or later 6.13-6.18.x) depending on your current branch

  1. Identify the currently running kernel version using 'uname -r' or 'cat /proc/version'
  2. Determine which version branch you are on (e.g., 6.1.x, 6.2.x-6.6.x, 6.7.x-6.12.x, 6.13.x-6.18.x)
  3. Upgrade to a kernel version that includes the fix: for 6.1.x branch upgrade to 6.1.167 or later; for 6.2-6.6.x upgrade to 6.6.130 or later; for 6.7-6.12.x upgrade to 6.12.78 or later; for 6.13-6.18.x upgrade to 6.18.20 or later
  4. On Debian/Ubuntu: 'apt update && apt upgrade linux-image-generic' or install specific version via 'apt install linux-image-6.1.167-generic'
  5. On RHEL/CentOS: 'yum update kernel' or 'dnf update kernel'
  6. On Fedora: 'dnf update kernel'
  7. Reboot the system to load the fixed kernel
  8. Verify the new kernel version is running with 'uname -r'
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require driver rebuilds or have compatibility concerns with custom modules; test in staging before production deployment

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

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-23392 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

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-2026-23392 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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