Vulnerability in Linux
CVE-2026-68426
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: xfrm: fix stale skb->prev after async crypto steals a GSO segment skb_gso_segment() leaves the segment list head with ->prev pointing at the last segment, an invariant validate_xmit_skb_list() relies on when it sets its tail pointer (tail = skb->prev). When validate_xmit_xfrm() walks a GSO list and some segments are stolen by async crypto (->xmit() returns -EINPROGRESS), those segments are unlinked from the list but the head ->prev is never updated. If the last segment is the one stolen, the returned head still has ->prev pointing at it, even though it is now owned by the crypto engine and may be freed. validate_xmit_skb_list() later does tail->next = skb, writing through that stale pointer -- a use-after-free. Repoint skb->prev at the last retained segment before returning.
Published · last modified .
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 9.8 (Critical). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
EPSS exploit prediction
EPSS: 0.004 (30.5th percentile), scored .
Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 31st percentile — 30.5% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.
EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.004 · newest: 0.004 · change: 0.000
Affected products
- Linux — versions 7.1.6, 4.16, 7.2
References
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2026-68426?
- CVE-2026-68426 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Linux. CVSS score: 9.8/10. Published 2026-08-10.
- How severe is CVE-2026-68426?
- Critical severity. CVSS v3 base score is 9.8 out of 10.