CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2026-53096NVD status: Modified

Linux: NULL Pointer Dereference

Published Updated By the CyberSecBulletin desk

CVE-2026-53096 is a high-severity NULL pointer dereference 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 4a3d0fe30b907ff324b1b49756f7e713d67f3645, b089aa6e94d7a08e74d076a0fe274842dc9feccc, 571a05ea1baaccc0dc1e0d227b2cbc978b96d392 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 0.1% 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 4a3d0fe30b907ff324b1b49756f7e713d67f3645 or b089aa6e94d7a08e74d076a0fe274842dc9feccc or 571a05ea1baaccc0dc1e0d227b2cbc978b96d392 or cb2c1f3cf65b855548e1b8d55a08bfbaa5a0901a, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
  2. Update Linux Kernel to 5.15.209 or 6.1.175 or 6.6.141 or 6.12.91, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.

Affected products and versions

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed in
LinuxLinuxe624d4ed4aa8cc3c69d1359b0aaea539203ed266 up to, but not including, 4a3d0fe30b907ff324b1b49756f7e713d67f3645; e624d4ed4aa8cc3c69d1359b0aaea539203ed266 up to, but not including, b089aa6e94d7a08e74d076a0fe274842dc9feccc; e624d4ed4aa8cc3c69d1359b0aaea539203ed266 up to, but not including, 571a05ea1baaccc0dc1e0d227b2cbc978b96d392; e624d4ed4aa8cc3c69d1359b0aaea539203ed266 up to, but not including, cb2c1f3cf65b855548e1b8d55a08bfbaa5a0901a; e624d4ed4aa8cc3c69d1359b0aaea539203ed266 up to, but not including, d4c4bd231ebad70e6f30db429e9640bf378b2f52; e624d4ed4aa8cc3c69d1359b0aaea539203ed266 up to, but not including, 7027e705062482a8cea43a1c13ede3c35653966f; e624d4ed4aa8cc3c69d1359b0aaea539203ed266 up to, but not including, 8ed82f807bb09d2c8455aaa665f2c6cb17bc6a19; 5.144a3d0fe30b907ff324b1b49756f7e713d67f3645, b089aa6e94d7a08e74d076a0fe274842dc9feccc, 571a05ea1baaccc0dc1e0d227b2cbc978b96d392, cb2c1f3cf65b855548e1b8d55a08bfbaa5a0901a, d4c4bd231ebad70e6f30db429e9640bf378b2f52, 7027e705062482a8cea43a1c13ede3c35653966f
LinuxLinux Kernel5.14 up to, but not including, 5.15.209; 5.16 up to, but not including, 6.1.175; 6.2 up to, but not including, 6.6.141; 6.7 up to, but not including, 6.12.91; 6.13 up to, but not including, 6.18.33; 6.19 up to, but not including, 7.0.105.15.209, 6.1.175, 6.6.141, 6.12.91, 6.18.33, 7.0.10

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 CNA.

Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: bpf: Use RCU-safe iteration in dev_map_redirect_multi() SKB path The DEVMAP_HASH branch in dev_map_redirect_multi() uses hlist_for_each_entry_safe() to iterate hash buckets, but this function runs under RCU protection (called from xdp_do_generic_redirect_map() in softirq context). Concurrent writers (__dev_map_hash_update_elem, dev_map_hash_delete_elem) modify the list using RCU primitives (hlist_add_head_rcu, hlist_del_rcu). hlist_for_each_entry_safe() performs plain pointer dereferences without rcu_dereference(), missing the acquire barrier needed to pair with writers' rcu_assign_pointer(). On weakly-ordered architectures (ARM64, POWER), a reader can observe a partially-constructed node. It also defeats CONFIG_PROVE_RCU lockdep validation and KCSAN data-race detection. Replace with hlist_for_each_entry_rcu() using rcu_read_lock_bh_held() as the lockdep condition, consistent with the rcu_dereference_check() used in the DEVMAP (non-hash) branch of the same functions. Also fix the same incorrect lockdep_is_held(&dtab->index_lock) condition in dev_map_enqueue_multi(), where the lock is not held either.

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

The underlying weakness: NULL Pointer Dereference

The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL.

How developers prevent this class of flaw

  • For any pointers that could have been modified or provided from a function that can return NULL, check the pointer for NULL before use. When working with a multithreaded or otherwise asynchronous environment, ensure that proper locking APIs are used to lock before the check, and unlock when it has finished.
  • Select a programming language that is not susceptible to these issues.
  • Check the results of all functions that return a value and verify that the value is non-null before acting upon it.

More NULL Pointer Dereference vulnerabilities (CWE-476)

Timeline

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

References

Recent NULL Pointer Dereference vulnerabilities

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