{"cve":"CVE-2026-23458","nvd":{"published":"2026-04-03T16:16:32.647","modified":"2026-10-19T19:17:49.877","status":"Modified","description":"In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nnetfilter: ctnetlink: fix use-after-free in ctnetlink_dump_exp_ct()\n\nctnetlink_dump_exp_ct() stores a conntrack pointer in cb->data for the\nnetlink dump callback ctnetlink_exp_ct_dump_table(), but drops the\nconntrack reference immediately after netlink_dump_start().  When the\ndump spans multiple rounds, the second recvmsg() triggers the dump\ncallback which dereferences the now-freed conntrack via nfct_help(ct),\nleading to a use-after-free on ct->ext.\n\nThe bug is that the netlink_dump_control has no .start or .done\ncallbacks to manage the conntrack reference across dump rounds.  Other\ndump functions in the same file (e.g. ctnetlink_get_conntrack) properly\nuse .start/.done callbacks for this purpose.\n\nFix this by adding .start and .done callbacks that hold and release the\nconntrack reference for the duration of the dump, and move the\nnfct_help() call after the cb->args[0] early-return check in the dump\ncallback to avoid dereferencing ct->ext unnecessarily.\n\n BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in ctnetlink_exp_ct_dump_table+0x4f/0x2e0\n Read of size 8 at addr ffff88810597ebf0 by task ctnetlink_poc/133\n\n CPU: 1 UID: 0 PID: 133 Comm: ctnetlink_poc Not tainted 7.0.0-rc2+ #3 PREEMPTLAZY\n Call Trace:\n  <TASK>\n  ctnetlink_exp_ct_dump_table+0x4f/0x2e0\n  netlink_dump+0x333/0x880\n  netlink_recvmsg+0x3e2/0x4b0\n  ? aa_sk_perm+0x184/0x450\n  sock_recvmsg+0xde/0xf0\n\n Allocated by task 133:\n  kmem_cache_alloc_noprof+0x134/0x440\n  __nf_conntrack_alloc+0xa8/0x2b0\n  ctnetlink_create_conntrack+0xa1/0x900\n  ctnetlink_new_conntrack+0x3cf/0x7d0\n  nfnetlink_rcv_msg+0x48e/0x510\n  netlink_rcv_skb+0xc9/0x1f0\n  nfnetlink_rcv+0xdb/0x220\n  netlink_unicast+0x3ec/0x590\n  netlink_sendmsg+0x397/0x690\n  __sys_sendmsg+0xf4/0x180\n\n Freed by task 0:\n  slab_free_after_rcu_debug+0xad/0x1e0\n  rcu_core+0x5c3/0x9c0","cvss_v4":null,"cvss_v3":{"version":"3.1","vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H","score":7.8},"cwes":["CWE-416"],"references":["https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/04c8907ce4e3d3e26c5e1a3e47aa5d17082cbb56","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/5cb81eeda909dbb2def209dd10636b51549a3f8a","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9821b47f669eb82791fa0b1a6ebaf9aa219bea72","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/bdf2724eefd4455a66863abb025bab8d3aa98c57","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/cd541f15b60e2257441398cf495d978f816d09f8"],"products":["linux:linux_kernel"],"source":"nvd","synced_at":"2026-10-21T03:43:09.190223697+00:00"},"epss":{"cve":"CVE-2026-23458","score":0.00132,"percentile":0.02724,"date":"2026-10-25"},"kev":null,"osv":[],"attribution":["This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.","EPSS scores: FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System, https://www.first.org/epss","Known exploited vulnerabilities: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog","Package advisories: OSV (https://osv.dev), from the GitHub Advisory Database, PyPA, Go, RustSec and other ecosystem databases, under CC-BY 4.0 or CC0","CVE records: the CVE Program's CVE List (https://www.cve.org), under its terms of use (https://www.cve.org/Legal/TermsOfUse). CVE is a registered trademark of The MITRE Corporation; this product is not affiliated with the CVE Program."]}