Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2026-31508

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-04-22

Fix available

A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.10.253 / 5.15.203 or later.

See remediation →

80/100

Remediation priority · High

Zero-click Patch available

Official description

NVD · unedited

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: openvswitch: Avoid releasing netdev before teardown completes The patch cited in the Fixes tag below changed the teardown code for OVS ports to no longer unconditionally take the RTNL. After this change, the netdev_destroy() callback can proceed immediately to the call_rcu() invocation if the IFF_OVS_DATAPATH flag is already cleared on the netdev. The ovs_netdev_detach_dev() function clears the flag before completing the unregistration, and if it gets preempted after clearing the flag (as can happen on an -rt kernel), netdev_destroy() can complete and the device can be freed before the unregistration completes. This leads to a splat like: [ 998.393867] Oops: general protection fault, probably for non-canonical address 0xff00000001000239: 0000 [#1] SMP PTI [ 998.393877] CPU: 42 UID: 0 PID: 55177 Comm: ip Kdump: loaded Not tainted 6.12.0-211.1.1.el10_2.x86_64+rt #1 PREEMPT_RT [ 998.393886] Hardware name: Dell Inc. PowerEdge R740/0JMK61, BIOS 2.24.0 03/27/2025 [ 998.393889] RIP: 0010:dev_set_promiscuity+0x8d/0xa0 [ 998.393901] Code: 00 00 75 d8 48 8b 53 08 48 83 ba b0 02 00 00 00 75 ca 48 83 c4 08 5b c3 cc cc cc cc 48 83 bf 48 09 00 00 00 75 91 48 8b 47 08 <48> 83 b8 b0 02 00 00 00 74 97 eb 81 0f 1f 80 00 00 00 00 90 90 90 [ 998.393906] RSP: 0018:ffffce5864a5f6a0 EFLAGS: 00010246 [ 998.393912] RAX: ff00000000ffff89 RBX: ffff894d0adf5a05 RCX: 0000000000000000 [ 998.393917] RDX: 0000000000000000 RSI: 00000000ffffffff RDI: ffff894d0adf5a05 [ 998.393921] RBP: ffff894d19252000 R08: ffff894d19252000 R09: 0000000000000000 [ 998.393924] R10: ffff894d19252000 R11: ffff894d192521b8 R12: 0000000000000006 [ 998.393927] R13: ffffce5864a5f738 R14: 00000000ffffffe2 R15: 0000000000000000 [ 998.393931] FS: 00007fad61971800(0000) GS:ffff894cc0140000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 [ 998.393936] CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 [ 998.393940] CR2: 000055df0a2a6e40 CR3: 000000011c7fe003 CR4: 00000000007726f0 [ 998.393944] PKRU: 55555554 [ 998.393946] Call Trace: [ 998.393949] <TASK> [ 998.393952] ? show_trace_log_lvl+0x1b0/0x2f0 [ 998.393961] ? show_trace_log_lvl+0x1b0/0x2f0 [ 998.393975] ? dp_device_event+0x41/0x80 [openvswitch] [ 998.394009] ? __die_body.cold+0x8/0x12 [ 998.394016] ? die_addr+0x3c/0x60 [ 998.394027] ? exc_general_protection+0x16d/0x390 [ 998.394042] ? asm_exc_general_protection+0x26/0x30 [ 998.394058] ? dev_set_promiscuity+0x8d/0xa0 [ 998.394066] ? ovs_netdev_detach_dev+0x3a/0x80 [openvswitch] [ 998.394092] dp_device_event+0x41/0x80 [openvswitch] [ 998.394102] notifier_call_chain+0x5a/0xd0 [ 998.394106] unregister_netdevice_many_notify+0x51b/0xa60 [ 998.394110] rtnl_dellink+0x169/0x3e0 [ 998.394121] ? rt_mutex_slowlock.constprop.0+0x95/0xd0 [ 998.394125] rtnetlink_rcv_msg+0x142/0x3f0 [ 998.394128] ? avc_has_perm_noaudit+0x69/0xf0 [ 998.394130] ? __pfx_rtnetlink_rcv_msg+0x10/0x10 [ 998.394132] netlink_rcv_skb+0x50/0x100 [ 998.394138] netlink_unicast+0x292/0x3f0 [ 998.394141] netlink_sendmsg+0x21b/0x470 [ 998.394145] ____sys_sendmsg+0x39d/0x3d0 [ 998.394149] ___sys_sendmsg+0x9a/0xe0 [ 998.394156] __sys_sendmsg+0x7a/0xd0 [ 998.394160] do_syscall_64+0x7f/0x170 [ 998.394162] entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x76/0x7e [ 998.394165] RIP: 0033:0x7fad61bf4724 [ 998.394188] Code: 89 02 b8 ff ff ff ff eb bb 66 2e 0f 1f 84 00 00 00 00 00 0f 1f 00 f3 0f 1e fa 80 3d c5 e9 0c 00 00 74 13 b8 2e 00 00 00 0f 05 <48> 3d 00 f0 ff ff 77 54 c3 0f 1f 00 48 83 ec 28 89 54 24 1c 48 89 [ 998.394189] RSP: 002b:00007ffd7e2f7cb8 EFLAGS: 00000202 ORIG_RAX: 000000000000002e [ 998.394191] RAX: ffffffffffffffda RBX: 0000000000000001 RCX: 00007fad61bf4724 [ 998.394193] RDX: 0000000000000000 RSI: 00007ffd7e2f7d20 RDI: 0000000000000003 [ 998.394194] RBP: 00007ffd7e2f7d90 R08: 0000000000000010 R09: 000000000000003f [ 998.394195] R10: 000055df11558010 R11: 0000000000000202 R12: 00007ffd7e2 ---truncated---

Technical summary

dbcve analysis

A detailed technical summary for this CVE is being prepared.

Affected products & versions

NVD · CPE data

Linux KernelOperating system

Affected:>= 5.10.248, < 5.10.253>= 5.15.198, < 5.15.203>= 6.1.160, < 6.1.168>= 6.6.120, < 6.6.131>= 6.12.64, < 6.12.80>= 6.18.4, < 6.18.21>= 6.19.1, < 6.19.11= 6.19= 7.0

CVSS breakdown

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

dbcve · scoped

Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.10.253 / 5.15.203 / 6.1.168 or later

Fixed in 5.10.2535.15.2036.1.168

Vendor patch git.kernel.org →

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to kernel 5.10.253+, 5.15.203+, 6.1.168+, or 6.6.131+ depending on your current branch

Identify the currently running kernel version using 'uname -r'
Check if the running kernel version is within an affected range: 5.10.248-5.10.252, 5.15.198-5.15.202, 6.1.160-6.1.167, or 6.6.120-6.6.130
If affected, upgrade the kernel to the next available stable release that includes the fix: 5.10.253 or newer for 5.10.x, 5.15.203 or newer for 5.15.x, 6.1.168 or newer for 6.1.x, or 6.6.131 or newer for 6.6.x
On Debian/Ubuntu: apt-get update && apt-get dist-upgrade or apt-get install linux-image-<version>
On RHEL/CentOS: yum update kernel or dnf update kernel
On SUSE: zypper update kernel-default
Reboot the system to load the fixed kernel
Verify the new kernel version is running with 'uname -r' and confirm it is >= the fixed version for your branch

Caveat Standard kernel upgrade risks apply - ensure compatibility with custom kernel modules and drivers before upgrading production systems

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 $1,950. Get the upgrade done

Scan for this in your stack

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References

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-31508 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2026-31508?

The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.

The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
A config change or rule that shut the vector down
A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon

No notes yet

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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
No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data

At a glance

A fix existsUpgrade to 5.10.253 / 5.15.203 or later

Severity 7.8 High

Exploit likelihood EPSS, next 30 days 0.1%

Affects: Linux Kernel

Remediation

A high-priority fix

Get a fix

Estimated effortfrom ~11 hrs

ComplexityModerate

Typical engagementfrom $1,950

What a fix involves

We scope it with you and confirm a fixed quote
A specialist builds a reviewed fix
You deploy it to staging first
Optional re-test once it’s live

A high-priority vulnerability. Send your environment and a specialist will scope CVE-2026-31508 and return a fixed quote and timeline.

You’ll deal with our team directly and deploy the reviewed fix to staging first — never straight to production.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Scan for this in your stack

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

Practitioner notes

No notes yet

Official description

Technical summary

Affected products & versions

CVSS breakdown

Remediation

References