Unauthenticated kernel compromise via stale IPv6 pointers
Published Jun 24, 2026 · Updated Jun 24, 2026
Use-after-free in Linux Kernel IPv6 ICMP handling allows remote attackers to compromise or crash a host via crafted ICMPv6 packets. icmpv6_rcv() caches source and destination address pointers into skb->head before pskb_pull(), which can reallocate and free that buffer, leaving stale pointers for slow-path debug access. No account or user action is required; the attacker controls the ICMPv6 type, checksum, and fragmented or non-linear packet layout, and exploitation can disclose or modify kernel memory or panic the host.
Summary
What happened
Use-after-free in Linux Kernel IPv6 ICMP handling allows remote attackers to compromise or crash a host via crafted ICMPv6 packets. icmpv6_rcv() caches source and destination address pointers into skb->head before pskb_pull(), which can reallocate and free that buffer, leaving stale pointers for slow-path debug access. No account or user action is required; the attacker controls the ICMPv6 type, checksum, and fragmented or non-linear packet layout, and exploitation can disclose or modify kernel memory or panic the host.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-53006
- Published
- Jun 24, 2026
- Updated
- Jun 24, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux Kernel
- Classifications
- T1190
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jun 24, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Jun 24, 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.
- Affected versionversion=4.4
- Affected versionversion=4b3418fba0fe819197e3359d5ddbef84ba2c59de <0069813e6ca9309eca78022bcb3aeb1e9ef90a12
- Affected versionversion=4b3418fba0fe819197e3359d5ddbef84ba2c59de <085e31a811ef234ef8c3e219c4636dfebfe7e10f
- Affected versionversion=4b3418fba0fe819197e3359d5ddbef84ba2c59de <1e1f0f89ee4692a64be3f3707ff8ac1ae57b03e7
- Affected versionversion=4b3418fba0fe819197e3359d5ddbef84ba2c59de <38bdbc897c0d83a3e2b925a51b69420f1feba29a
- Affected versionversion=4b3418fba0fe819197e3359d5ddbef84ba2c59de <7bff2c8fe5c35ae58bf73104f53db3676e6e5d94
- Affected versionversion=4b3418fba0fe819197e3359d5ddbef84ba2c59de <7c66b368c6ff453f99cb39d84af93e908e51eef2
- Affected versionversion=4b3418fba0fe819197e3359d5ddbef84ba2c59de <aff0f28f5be803de2452ce702631c021fcd9ce8a
- Affected versionversion=4b3418fba0fe819197e3359d5ddbef84ba2c59de <f996edd7615e686ada141b7f3395025729ff8ccb
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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