Kernel memory corruption via freed peer traversal
Published Aug 10, 2026 · Updated Aug 10, 2026
Use-after-free in Linux kernel ovpn allows remote authenticated users to corrupt memory or crash the host via peer disconnects. The unlock_ovpn() loop drops each peer's last reference before its advance expression reads release_entry.next, so the loop accesses a freed peer. Exploitation requires an established low-privileged VPN peer that forces transport errors, reconnects, or keepalive expiry, leading to kernel memory disclosure, corruption, or panic.
Summary
What happened
Use-after-free in Linux kernel ovpn allows remote authenticated users to corrupt memory or crash the host via peer disconnects. The unlock_ovpn() loop drops each peer's last reference before its advance expression reads release_entry.next, so the loop accesses a freed peer. Exploitation requires an established low-privileged VPN peer that forces transport errors, reconnects, or keepalive expiry, leading to kernel memory disclosure, corruption, or panic.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-68341
- Published
- Aug 10, 2026
- Updated
- Aug 10, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- CWE-416, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Aug 10, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 10, 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=6.16
- Affected versionversion=80747caef33d77f5c1b3d24644e6d7dae69066b5 <4cdb209f12a89c5faf9be0c45edb90ccdf65db0c
- Affected versionversion=80747caef33d77f5c1b3d24644e6d7dae69066b5 <5b96227c0e8b212b74838424c929fc889aedb555
- Affected versionversion=80747caef33d77f5c1b3d24644e6d7dae69066b5 <e1ad6fe5db719874efa45b2caf9934552e09fc43
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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