NULL pointer dereference in Linux

CVE-2026-45846

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: bareudp: fix NULL pointer dereference in bareudp_fill_metadata_dst() bareudp_fill_metadata_dst() passes bareudp->sock to udp_tunnel6_dst_lookup() in the IPv6 path without a NULL check. The socket is only created in bareudp_open() and NULLed in bareudp_stop(), so calling this function while the device is down triggers a NULL dereference via sock->sk. BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000018 RIP: 0010:udp_tunnel6_dst_lookup (net/ipv6/ip6_udp_tunnel.c:160) Call Trace: <TASK> bareudp_fill_metadata_dst (drivers/net/bareudp.c:532) do_execute_actions (net/openvswitch/actions.c:901) ovs_execute_actions (net/openvswitch/actions.c:1589) ovs_packet_cmd_execute (net/openvswitch/datapath.c:700) genl_family_rcv_msg_doit (net/netlink/genetlink.c:1114) genl_rcv_msg (net/netlink/genetlink.c:1209) netlink_rcv_skb (net/netlink/af_netlink.c:2550) </TASK> Add a NULL check returning -ESHUTDOWN, consistent with the xmit paths in the same driver.

Published · last modified .

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 5.5 (Medium). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.002 (4.8th percentile), scored .

Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 5th percentile — 4.8% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS trend (30 days)EPSS over the last 30 days for CVE-2026-45846: held from 0.001 to 0.002.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.001 · newest: 0.002 · change: +0.000

Affected products

  • Linux — versions 5.7, 5.15.209, 571912c69f0ed731bd1e071ade9dc7ca4aa52065
  • Linux Kernel — versions 7.1

Weakness classification (CWE)

References

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-45846?
CVE-2026-45846 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux, classified under NULL Pointer Dereference. CVSS score: 5.5/10. Published 2026-05-27.
How severe is CVE-2026-45846?
Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 5.5 out of 10.