CVE-2026-99078: net/mlx5e: Prevent stale XSK buffer release on MPWQE refill retry
Noroxi assessment
Priority: Monitor (action score 39/100)
- The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
- Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.45% (FIRST EPSS).
- Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it. No account or password is required. No user action is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
- Fixed version: Linux Linux 3d73a1164a8c6b4461907a65cb6c022ea4fd39af, 63811edf512584c946e5e96b100e9e280703bbb5, 867119b4b588037724b85839d534465f0334d9bd; azl3 kernel 6.6.157.1-1 on Azure Linux 3.0 Release Notes.
- Mentioned 1 time in Turkish national cyber security advisories (siberguvenlik.gov.tr).
Low priority for now. Upgrade to Linux Linux 3d73a1164a8c6b4461907a65cb6c022ea4fd39af, 63811edf512584c946e5e96b100e9e280703bbb5, 867119b4b588037724b85839d534465f0334d9bd; azl3 kernel 6.6.157.1-1 on Azure Linux 3.0 Release Notes or later.
Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it
Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net/mlx5e: Prevent stale XSK buffer release on MPWQE refill retry With AF_XDP on a striding RQ, mlx5e defers releasing XSK buffers until an MPWQE is refilled. If XSK allocation then returns -ENOMEM, actual_wq_head is not advanced and a later NAPI poll retries the same WQE. mlx5e_free_rx_mpwqe() leaves each released slot marked as releasable. On retry it can therefore call xsk_buff_free() again through stale pointers after the frames have returned to the XSK pool and been reallocated. Set all skip_release_bitmap bits in the common error path of mlx5e_xsk_alloc_rx_mpwqe(). This matches mlx5e_alloc_rx_mpwqe(). A successful allocation already clears the bitmap after replacing every buffer, so retries become idempotent without changing the success path. Fault injection forced three consecutive failures for one selected MPWQE. Both an early allocation failure and a partial 8-of-16-buffer unwind released the original 16 XSK buffers only once. Each error left a full bitmap, the following NAPI retry skipped the release, and a later successful allocation cleared it. A 20-second AF_XDP zero-copy pressure run exercised 1,575,262 buffer allocation failures without invalid descriptors, WQE errors, or kernel warnings.
- Published
- Oct 23, 2026
- Updated
- Oct 24, 2026
- EPSS
- 0.4% · 39th percentile
- CWE
- —
Report tools
Action score
39
Monitor
Low priority for now.
- CVSS
- 39 / 40 · 9.8 / 10
- CISA KEV
- 0 / 30 · Not listed
- EPSS
- 0 / 30 · 0.4%
CNA vs NVD score
- NVD
- —
- CNA · Linux
- 9.8
- NVD has not scored this yet; the score shown is the CNA’s.
The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.
Get told when this record changes
- Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
- No public exploit code on record
- A fix has been released
If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.
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Noroxi analysis
What does it mean in your environment?
The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.
We use this product, ask for helpAffected systems
Is your version affected?
Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.
—
Versions reported by the vendor
Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (Linux). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.
Linux Linux
- 6.4affected
- 4c2a1323680709078736a2886c754004e9fe42e6 and later · before f3a52e2ec2788a7f6b64137985c087188a54ad4faffected · git
- 4c2a1323680709078736a2886c754004e9fe42e6 and later · before d215d09606b0fcd18ad1eb532995782a21cea49daffected · git
- 4c2a1323680709078736a2886c754004e9fe42e6 and later · before 867119b4b588037724b85839d534465f0334d9bdaffected · git
- 4c2a1323680709078736a2886c754004e9fe42e6 and later · before 3d73a1164a8c6b4461907a65cb6c022ea4fd39afaffected · git
- 4c2a1323680709078736a2886c754004e9fe42e6 and later · before 63811edf512584c946e5e96b100e9e280703bbb5affected · git
- before 6.4not affected · semver
- 6.6.160 and later · up to and including 6.6.*not affected · semver
- 6.12.113 and later · up to and including 6.12.*not affected · semver
- 6.18.57 and later · up to and including 6.18.*not affected · semver
Package-level exposure
OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian:13 | linux | before 6.12.113-1 | 6.12.113-1 |
| Debian:14 | linux | before 7.2.11-1 | 7.2.11-1 |
Same product
linux: all recordsOther highest-scoring records for the same primary product.
- CVE-2026-74705udp: fix potential use-after-free in tunnel segmentation40Plan
- CVE-2026-74612veth: fix skb length accounting after XDP frag adjustment40Plan
- CVE-2026-74475vxlan: use neigh_ha_snapshot() in route_shortcircuit()40Plan
Published before and after this one in the same product
- ← EarlierCVE-2026-99076Oct 23, 2026 · ipv6: udp: Create exceptions before socket matching0Monitor
- ← EarlierCVE-2026-99077Oct 23, 2026 · ipv4: udp: Create exceptions before socket matching29Monitor
- Later →CVE-2026-99079Oct 23, 2026 · net/mlx5e: Prevent stale XSK buffer release on refill retry39Monitor
Remediation
Which version to upgrade to
Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.
| Product / package | Fixed version | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Linux Linux | 3d73a1164a8c6b4461907a65cb6c022ea4fd39af | Vendor (CNA) |
| Linux Linux | 63811edf512584c946e5e96b100e9e280703bbb5 | Vendor (CNA) |
| Linux Linux | 867119b4b588037724b85839d534465f0334d9bd | Vendor (CNA) |
| Linux Linux | d215d09606b0fcd18ad1eb532995782a21cea49d | Vendor (CNA) |
| Linux Linux | f3a52e2ec2788a7f6b64137985c087188a54ad4f | Vendor (CNA) |
| azl3 kernel 6.6.157.1-1 on Azure Linux 3.0 | Release Notes | Microsoft (MSRC) |
| debian:linux | 6.12.113-1 · Debian:13 | Package registry (OSV) |
Exploit status
No known public exploit
No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.
Research context
For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.
Timeline
From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.
- Published
- Fix recordedsame day
- TodayNov 2, 2026+10 d
FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).
Patch and commit links
Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.
No commit or PR link among the references.
Credits
All researchersFinders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.
No credits in the CNA record.
Variant candidates
Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.
No nightly-computed relations.
Chain candidates
An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.
—
Bug bounty scope
No known public program.
Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).
National notice (Türkiye Cybersecurity Directorate / USOM)
Official security notices citing this record; remediation advice is on the agency's page.
- TR-26-1390 · Oct 26, 2026(Linux Kernel Güvenlik Bildirimi)
Technical details
Attack conditions
- Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
- No account or password is required.
- No user action is required.
- No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
If successful
- Confidentiality
- high · data can be read
- Integrity
- high · data or configuration can be modified
- Availability
- high · the service can be disrupted
- Attack vector
- Network
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality impact
- High
- Integrity impact
- High
- Availability impact
- High
Weakness class (CWE)
—
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
nvd-secondary
Attack context
MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.
MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.
Change log
- CVSS— → 9.8
- Severity— → critical
- Exploit maturity— → none
- Fix✗ → ✓
For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →
References
Show all references (4 more)Show less
Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.