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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2026-53055

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-06-24
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.18.33 / 7.0.10 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click 8 weeks old

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: crypto: hisilicon/sec2 - prevent req used-after-free for sec During packet transmission, if the system is under heavy load, the hardware might complete processing the packet and free the request memory (req) before the transmission function finishes. If the software subsequently accesses this req, a use-after-free error will occur. The qp_ctx memory exists throughout the packet sending process, so replace the req with the qp_ctx.

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 · high confidence

Use-after-free vulnerability in the Linux kernel's Hisilicon SEC2 crypto driver. During heavy system load, the hardware can complete packet processing and free the request memory (req) before the software transmission function finishes, causing a use-after-free when software subsequently accesses the freed req. The fix replaces req with qp_ctx which has proper lifetime management throughout the packet sending process.

MitigationApply the kernel patch that replaces req with qp_ctx in the Hisilicon SEC2 driver. This requires updating the Linux kernel to the patched version containing the fix.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

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:>= 6.17, < 6.18.33>= 6.19, < 7.0.10

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify if HiSilicon SEC2 crypto driver is in use
    Run 'lsmod | grep -i sec' or check /sys/module/ for hisi_sec2, sec2, or similar HiSilicon crypto module names. Also check 'lspci | grep -i silk' or check dmesg for SEC2 driver initialization messages.
    Affected if The module hisi_sec2 or sec2 is loaded and actively handling crypto requests.
  2. Determine kernel version
    Run 'uname -r' to get the running kernel version. Compare against the upstream kernel version where the fix (replacing req pointer with qp_ctx) was merged.
    Affected if The kernel version is older than the version containing the CVE-2026-53055 patch.
  3. Verify driver source for vulnerable pattern
    If kernel source is available, examine drivers/crypto/hisilicon/sec2/sec_crypto.c or similar. Look for the software transmission function that accesses the 'req' pointer after hardware completion. Check if the code still uses the short-lived req pointer instead of the longer-lived qp_ctx structure.
    Affected if The driver source contains the vulnerable req pointer access pattern without proper reference management.
  4. Check system for heavy crypto workload
    Monitor system under typical or elevated load using 'top', 'vmstat', or by reviewing crypto operation counts in /proc/crypto or through hardware counter APIs.
    Affected if The system runs workloads that trigger the SEC2 crypto accelerator under heavy load conditions.

The environment is affected if the HiSilicon SEC2 driver is loaded, the kernel version predates the CVE-2026-53055 fix, and the system uses the vulnerable driver code pattern while processing crypto workloads.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

From vendor data
Upgrade available Upgrade to 6.18.33 / 7.0.10 or later
Fixed in 6.18.337.0.10
Interim mitigation

Apply the kernel patch that replaces req with qp_ctx in the Hisilicon SEC2 driver. This requires updating the Linux kernel to the patched version containing the fix.

Fix this in Linux Kernel Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,560
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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-2026-53055 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
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