CVE-2026-23004: dst: fix races in rt6_uncached_list_del() and rt_del_uncached_list()
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
dst: fix races in rt6_uncached_list_del() and rt_del_uncached_list()
syzbot was able to crash the kernel in rt6_uncached_list_flush_dev()
in an interesting way [1]
Crash happens in list_del_init()/INIT_LIST_HEAD() while writing
list->prev, while the prior write on list->next went well.
static inline void INIT_LIST_HEAD(struct list_head *list)
{
WRITE_ONCE(list->next, list); // This went well
WRITE_ONCE(list->prev, list); // Crash, @list has been freed.
}
Issue here is that rt6_uncached_list_del() did not attempt to lock
ul->lock, as list_empty(&rt->dst.rt_uncached) returned
true because the WRITE_ONCE(list->next, list) happened on the other CPU.
We might use list_del_init_careful() and list_empty_careful(),
or make sure rt6_uncached_list_del() always grabs the spinlock
whenever rt->dst.rt_uncached_list has been set.
A similar fix is neeed for IPv4.
[1]
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in INIT_LIST_HEAD include/linux/list.h:46 [inline]
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in list_del_init include/linux/list.h:296 [inline]
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in rt6_uncached_list_flush_dev net/ipv6/route.c:191 [inline]
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in rt6_disable_ip+0x633/0x730 net/ipv6/route.c:5020
Write of size 8 at addr ffff8880294cfa78 by task kworker/u8:14/3450
CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 3450 Comm: kworker/u8:14 Tainted: G L syzkaller #0 PREEMPT_{RT,(full)}
Tainted: [L]=SOFTLOCKUP
Hardware name: Google Google Compute Engine/Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 10/25/2025
Workqueue: netns cleanup_net
Call Trace:
<TASK>
dump_stack_lvl+0xe8/0x150 lib/dump_stack.c:120
print_address_description mm/kasan/report.c:378 [inline]
print_report+0xca/0x240 mm/kasan/report.c:482
kasan_report+0x118/0x150 mm/kasan/report.c:595
INIT_LIST_HEAD include/linux/list.h:46 [inline]
list_del_init include/linux/list.h:296 [inline]
rt6_uncached_list_flush_dev net/ipv6/route.c:191 [inline]
rt6_disable_ip+0x633/0x730 net/ipv6/route.c:5020
addrconf_ifdown+0x143/0x18a0 net/ipv6/addrconf.c:3853
addrconf_notify+0x1bc/0x1050 net/ipv6/addrconf.c:-1
notifier_call_chain+0x19d/0x3a0 kernel/notifier.c:85
call_netdevice_notifiers_extack net/core/dev.c:2268 [inline]
call_netdevice_notifiers net/core/dev.c:2282 [inline]
netif_close_many+0x29c/0x410 net/core/dev.c:1785
unregister_netdevice_many_notify+0xb50/0x2330 net/core/dev.c:12353
ops_exit_rtnl_list net/core/net_namespace.c:187 [inline]
ops_undo_list+0x3dc/0x990 net/core/net_namespace.c:248
cleanup_net+0x4de/0x7b0 net/core/net_namespace.c:696
process_one_work kernel/workqueue.c:3257 [inline]
process_scheduled_works+0xad1/0x1770 kernel/workqueue.c:3340
worker_thread+0x8a0/0xda0 kernel/workqueue.c:3421
kthread+0x711/0x8a0 kernel/kthread.c:463
ret_from_fork+0x510/0xa50 arch/x86/kernel/process.c:158
ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30 arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:246
</TASK>
Allocated by task 803:
kasan_save_stack mm/kasan/common.c:57 [inline]
kasan_save_track+0x3e/0x80 mm/kasan/common.c:78
unpoison_slab_object mm/kasan/common.c:340 [inline]
__kasan_slab_alloc+0x6c/0x80 mm/kasan/common.c:366
kasan_slab_alloc include/linux/kasan.h:253 [inline]
slab_post_alloc_hook mm/slub.c:4953 [inline]
slab_alloc_node mm/slub.c:5263 [inline]
kmem_cache_alloc_noprof+0x18d/0x6c0 mm/slub.c:5270
dst_alloc+0x105/0x170 net/core/dst.c:89
ip6_dst_alloc net/ipv6/route.c:342 [inline]
icmp6_dst_alloc+0x75/0x460 net/ipv6/route.c:3333
mld_sendpack+0x683/0xe60 net/ipv6/mcast.c:1844
mld_send_cr net/ipv6/mcast.c:2154 [inline]
mld_ifc_work+0x83e/0xd60 net/ipv6/mcast.c:2693
process_one_work kernel/workqueue.c:3257 [inline]
process_scheduled_works+0xad1/0x1770 kernel/workqueue.c:3340
worker_thread+0x8a0/0xda0 kernel/workqueue.c:3421
kthread+0x711/0x8a0 kernel/kthread.c:463
ret_from_fork+0x510/0xa50 arch/x86/kernel/process.c:158
ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30 arch/x86/entry/entr
---truncated---
Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2026-23004 is a Linux kernel race condition in network route cleanup code. A timing bug can lead to use-after-free memory corruption and kernel crashes. The CVE is rated high, but the provided sources do not show active exploitation or a public weaponized exploit.
Executive priority
Treat as a high-priority kernel maintenance item, especially on shared compute and container platforms. There is no provided evidence of active exploitation, so urgency should be driven by local-user exposure and patch availability.
Technical view
The bug affects IPv6 rt6_uncached_list_del() and a similar IPv4 path in rt_del_uncached_list(). Incomplete locking around uncached route list deletion can race with list_del_init(), causing a KASAN-detected slab use-after-free during network namespace or device cleanup.
Likely exposure
Exposure is limited to Linux kernels in the affected ranges listed by the CVE record. Systems running vendor kernels may be patched through backports, so version alone is not enough; validate distro advisory status and patch provenance.
Exploitation context
The CVSS vector is local, low privilege, no user interaction. The source bundle documents a syzbot-triggered kernel crash. CISA KEV is false, and no cited source confirms active exploitation in the wild.
Researcher notes
The strongest evidence is the upstream fix description and syzbot KASAN trace. The supplied affected-version data is sparse and partly commit-based, so distro-specific validation is necessary before declaring systems exposed or remediated.
Mitigation direction
Apply Linux stable fixes referenced by the CVE or your distribution's equivalent kernel update.
Prioritize multi-user systems, containers hosts, and systems allowing untrusted local workloads.
Check vendor advisories before assuming a distro kernel is vulnerable by upstream version.
Restrict untrusted local access where patching must be delayed.
Validation and detection
Inventory running kernel versions across Linux hosts.
Map kernels to vendor advisories and the referenced stable commits.
Confirm whether the IPv4 and IPv6 uncached route fixes are present or backported.
Review kernel crash logs for matching KASAN use-after-free traces if debugging incidents.
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Potential ATT&CK relevance
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