CVE-2026-22979

Persistent memory leak via stale truesize subtraction

Published Jan 23, 2026 · Updated Jan 23, 2026

Memory-accounting error in the Linux kernel allows local users to cause a persistent memory leak during GRO packet forwarding. skb_segment_list unconditionally adds each orphaned fragment's truesize to delta_truesize and subtracts it from the head SKB, although the fragments no longer carry socket charges. The path requires SKB_GSO_FRAGLIST packets constructed by GRO; the under-count keeps sk_wmem_alloc nonzero and prevents affected sockets from being destroyed.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.13%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

Memory-accounting error in the Linux kernel allows local users to cause a persistent memory leak during GRO packet forwarding. skb_segment_list unconditionally adds each orphaned fragment's truesize to delta_truesize and subtracts it from the head SKB, although the fragments no longer carry socket charges. The path requires SKB_GSO_FRAGLIST packets constructed by GRO; the under-count keeps sk_wmem_alloc nonzero and prevents affected sockets from being destroyed.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-22979
Published
Jan 23, 2026
Updated
Jan 23, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux Kernel
Classifications
CWE-401, T1499
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jan 23, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Jan 23, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=2eeab8c47c3c0276e0746bc382f405c9a236a5ad <0b27828ebd1ed3107d7929c3737adbe862e99e74
  2. Affected versionversion=5b3b67f731296027cceb3efad881ae281213f86f
  3. Affected versionversion=6.9
  4. Affected versionversion=d225b0ac96dc40d7e8ae2bc227eb2c56e130975f
  5. Affected versionversion=ed4cccef64c1d0d5b91e69f7a8a6697c3a865486 <238e03d0466239410b72294b79494e43d4fabe77
  6. Affected versionversion=ed4cccef64c1d0d5b91e69f7a8a6697c3a865486 <3264881431e308b9c72cb8a0159d57a56d67dd79
  7. Affected versionversion=ed4cccef64c1d0d5b91e69f7a8a6697c3a865486 <c114a32a2e70b82d447f409f7ffcfa3058f9d5bd
  8. Affected versionversion=fc126c1d51e9552eacd2d717b9ffe9262a8a4cd6 <88bea149db2057112af3aaf63534b24fab5858ab

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linux Kernelversion=2eeab8c47c3c0276e0746bc382f405c9a236a5ad <0b27828ebd1ed3107d7929c3737adbe862e99e74; version=5b3b67f731296027cceb3efad881ae281213f86f; version=6.9; version=d225b0ac96dc40d7e8ae2bc227eb2c56e130975f; version=ed4cccef64c1d0d5b91e69f7a8a6697c3a865486 <238e03d0466239410b72294b79494e43d4fabe77; version=ed4cccef64c1d0d5b91e69f7a8a6697c3a865486 <3264881431e308b9c72cb8a0159d57a56d67dd79; version=ed4cccef64c1d0d5b91e69f7a8a6697c3a865486 <c114a32a2e70b82d447f409f7ffcfa3058f9d5bd; version=fc126c1d51e9552eacd2d717b9ffe9262a8a4cd6 <88bea149db2057112af3aaf63534b24fab5858ab

Published CVSS scores

5.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-401Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime
T1499Endpoint Denial of Service

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo