CVE-2026-23438

Local system crash via unguarded CM3 access

Published Apr 3, 2026 · Updated Apr 3, 2026

NULL pointer dereference in the Linux Kernel mvpp2 driver allows local users to crash the system by changing an interface MTU. The mvpp2_bm_switch_buffers() function calls mvpp2_bm_pool_update_priv_fc() without checking global_tx_fc, causing CM3 register access through a NULL cm3_base when CM3 SRAM is absent. Reaching the crash requires local low-privileged access to change an mvpp2 interface MTU across the jumbo-frame threshold on affected hardware.

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

What happened

NULL pointer dereference in the Linux Kernel mvpp2 driver allows local users to crash the system by changing an interface MTU. The mvpp2_bm_switch_buffers() function calls mvpp2_bm_pool_update_priv_fc() without checking global_tx_fc, causing CM3 register access through a NULL cm3_base when CM3 SRAM is absent. Reaching the crash requires local low-privileged access to change an mvpp2 interface MTU across the jumbo-frame threshold on affected hardware.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-23438
Published
Apr 3, 2026
Updated
Apr 3, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux Kernel
Classifications
CWE-476, T1499
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Apr 3, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Apr 3, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

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

  1. Affected versionversion=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <7bd20f4b3ef3044dc55acd5b8ef748a70d29d03f
  2. Affected versionversion=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <7df2b50cae1a76cbb90b294f3edb61e3e10bf2e9
  3. Affected versionversion=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <8a63baadf08453f66eb582fdb6dd234f72024723
  4. Affected versionversion=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <8baced53a35fc9710f80d6ca016a2c418dc3231f
  5. Affected versionversion=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <da089f74a993f846685067b14158cb41b879ff29
  6. Affected versionversion=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <ff0c54f088f7ab91dbbf47cf8244460f99122750
  7. Affected versionversion=5.12

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linux Kernelversion=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <7bd20f4b3ef3044dc55acd5b8ef748a70d29d03f; version=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <7df2b50cae1a76cbb90b294f3edb61e3e10bf2e9; version=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <8a63baadf08453f66eb582fdb6dd234f72024723; version=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <8baced53a35fc9710f80d6ca016a2c418dc3231f; version=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <da089f74a993f846685067b14158cb41b879ff29; version=3a616b92a9d17448d96a33bf58e69f01457fd43a <ff0c54f088f7ab91dbbf47cf8244460f99122750; version=5.12

Published CVSS scores

0.0OracleCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:N
5.5Canonical UbuntuCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
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

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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-476NULL Pointer Dereference
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

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Your stack

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