CVE-2026-72234

System crash via stale unicast packet pointer

Published Aug 15, 2026 · Updated Aug 15, 2026

Use-after-free in Linux kernel batman-adv allows local users to crash the system through crafted unicast mesh traffic. batadv_get_vid() can reallocate the socket buffer, but batadv_check_unicast_ttvn() continues reading unicast_packet from the freed allocation instead of reacquiring it. Reaching the stale-pointer read requires an active batman-adv mesh and the ability to supply a unicast packet that triggers the data pull.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.68%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Use-after-free in Linux kernel batman-adv allows local users to crash the system through crafted unicast mesh traffic. batadv_get_vid() can reallocate the socket buffer, but batadv_check_unicast_ttvn() continues reading unicast_packet from the freed allocation instead of reacquiring it. Reaching the stale-pointer read requires an active batman-adv mesh and the ability to supply a unicast packet that triggers the data pull.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-72234
Published
Aug 15, 2026
Updated
Aug 15, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
CWE-416, T1499.004
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Aug 15, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 15, 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=3.13
  2. Affected versionversion=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <7141990add3f75436f2933cb310654cad3b1e3e9
  3. Affected versionversion=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <7b162b36de750565404cd3b98315706622c6974f
  4. Affected versionversion=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <979175834a699ccc3c4c0b0ba60ecae0f135a587
  5. Affected versionversion=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <9a7b7248798123efbd5fafe58461d57c7cc718af
  6. Affected versionversion=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <9c2c05629e46c1fd43931506d41c56a885a98eb4
  7. Affected versionversion=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <aa9558af859934f24717d4bab97d61004f91a736
  8. Affected versionversion=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <b8afcf799b2cc92c41beebd029e53ed18960184a
  9. Affected versionversion=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <ed90eb5c68420cdfe67ec1f773324198d2ef6f50

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=3.13; version=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <7141990add3f75436f2933cb310654cad3b1e3e9; version=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <7b162b36de750565404cd3b98315706622c6974f; version=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <979175834a699ccc3c4c0b0ba60ecae0f135a587; version=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <9a7b7248798123efbd5fafe58461d57c7cc718af; version=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <9c2c05629e46c1fd43931506d41c56a885a98eb4; version=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <aa9558af859934f24717d4bab97d61004f91a736; version=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <b8afcf799b2cc92c41beebd029e53ed18960184a; version=c018ad3de61a1dc4194879a53e5559e094aa7b1a <ed90eb5c68420cdfe67ec1f773324198d2ef6f50

Published CVSS scores

5.5OracleCVSS: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.

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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-416Use After Free
T1499.004Endpoint Denial of Service: Application or System Exploitation

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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