CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2026-46069NVD status: Undergoing Analysis

Linux: Use After Free

Published Updated By the CyberSecBulletin desk

CVE-2026-46069 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. The record lists versions c3508895450cca4aeaf5dbadbb5e582363005264, 1958a92599b2653d730ccb6f5685fc3fbed21812, a88f5391dc68f78cae5eb6a8cd341cafee795d3d as the first without the flaw, so updating Linux to one of those releases or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.14% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.

Next patch cycle

High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.

What to do

  1. Update Linux to c3508895450cca4aeaf5dbadbb5e582363005264 or 1958a92599b2653d730ccb6f5685fc3fbed21812 or a88f5391dc68f78cae5eb6a8cd341cafee795d3d or 11869ce402d95519d49b25a2a97741f68d69d103, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
  2. Update Linux Kernel to 5.10.259 or 5.15.210 or 6.1.176 or 6.6.140, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.

Affected products and versions

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed in
LinuxLinux4636187da60b6e33526050235c610409d9cc00e8 up to, but not including, c3508895450cca4aeaf5dbadbb5e582363005264; 4636187da60b6e33526050235c610409d9cc00e8 up to, but not including, 1958a92599b2653d730ccb6f5685fc3fbed21812; 4636187da60b6e33526050235c610409d9cc00e8 up to, but not including, a88f5391dc68f78cae5eb6a8cd341cafee795d3d; 4636187da60b6e33526050235c610409d9cc00e8 up to, but not including, 11869ce402d95519d49b25a2a97741f68d69d103; 4636187da60b6e33526050235c610409d9cc00e8 up to, but not including, 63fe3389b3e092d6c0eeea9fc0318e7918b16618; 4636187da60b6e33526050235c610409d9cc00e8 up to, but not including, 4e179a60a60c0a5aea245e8e67768343c0f070b8; 4636187da60b6e33526050235c610409d9cc00e8 up to, but not including, 030abbae49cf9fd1fba7aa08e15ec81efbeb78cf; 4636187da60b6e33526050235c610409d9cc00e8 up to, but not including, ae5e95d4157481693be2317e3ffcd84e36010cbb; and 1 more rangesc3508895450cca4aeaf5dbadbb5e582363005264, 1958a92599b2653d730ccb6f5685fc3fbed21812, a88f5391dc68f78cae5eb6a8cd341cafee795d3d, 11869ce402d95519d49b25a2a97741f68d69d103, 63fe3389b3e092d6c0eeea9fc0318e7918b16618, 4e179a60a60c0a5aea245e8e67768343c0f070b8
SiemensSIMATIC S7-1500 TM MFP - GNU/Linux subsystemall versionsNot stated
LinuxLinux Kernel4.0 up to, but not including, 5.10.259; 5.11 up to, but not including, 5.15.210; 5.16 up to, but not including, 6.1.176; 6.2 up to, but not including, 6.6.140; 6.7 up to, but not including, 6.12.86; 6.13 up to, but not including, 6.18.27; 6.19 up to, but not including, 7.0.45.10.259, 5.15.210, 6.1.176, 6.6.140, 6.12.86, 6.18.27

Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.

How the severity score breaks down

Attack vector
LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
Attack complexity
LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
Privileges required
LowA basic user account is enough.
User interaction
NoneNo action by a victim is required.
Scope
UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
Confidentiality
HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
Integrity
HighData or code can be modified at will.
Availability
HighThe component can be taken down completely.

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by NVD.

Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: mwifiex: fix use-after-free in mwifiex_adapter_cleanup() The mwifiex_adapter_cleanup() function uses timer_delete() (non-synchronous) for the wakeup_timer before the adapter structure is freed. This is incorrect because timer_delete() does not wait for any running timer callback to complete. If the wakeup_timer callback (wakeup_timer_fn) is executing when mwifiex_adapter_cleanup() is called, the callback will continue to access adapter fields (adapter->hw_status, adapter->if_ops.card_reset, etc.) which may be freed by mwifiex_free_adapter() called later in the mwifiex_remove_card() path. Use timer_delete_sync() instead to ensure any running timer callback has completed before returning.

Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.

The underlying weakness: Use After Free

The product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory belongs to the code that operates on the new pointer.

How developers prevent this class of flaw

  • Choose a language that provides automatic memory management.
  • When freeing pointers, be sure to set them to NULL once they are freed. However, the utilization of multiple or complex data structures may lower the usefulness of this strategy.

More Use After Free vulnerabilities (CWE-416)

Timeline

  1. CVE record published.
  2. CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: partial).
  3. Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).

References

Recent Use After Free vulnerabilities

Spotted an error? Tell us.