CVE-2026-72255

Local privilege escalation via NFQUEUE bridge use-after-free

Published Aug 15, 2026 · Updated Aug 15, 2026

Use-after-free in Linux kernel netfilter allows local users to execute code or crash the host through an NFQUEUE bridge teardown race. __nf_queue promotes an embedded bridge fake rtable to a counted destination reference without pinning its net_bridge owner, allowing teardown to free the storage before dst_release uses it. Reachability requires CAP_NET_ADMIN in a user and network namespace, br_netfilter, an NFQUEUE binding, queued bridged traffic, and bridge deletion; exploitation can corrupt kernel memory or panic the host.

CVSS severity7.8
High
EPSS probability0.16%
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 netfilter allows local users to execute code or crash the host through an NFQUEUE bridge teardown race. __nf_queue promotes an embedded bridge fake rtable to a counted destination reference without pinning its net_bridge owner, allowing teardown to free the storage before dst_release uses it. Reachability requires CAP_NET_ADMIN in a user and network namespace, br_netfilter, an NFQUEUE binding, queued bridged traffic, and bridge deletion; exploitation can corrupt kernel memory or panic the host.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-72255
Published
Aug 15, 2026
Updated
Aug 15, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
CWE-825, T1068
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

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=3.18
  2. Affected versionversion=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <01ace27af47801dd7f6b839e782b62863af979cc
  3. Affected versionversion=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <0ca505346c5e2905ab7b5313af801fcf38f594a8
  4. Affected versionversion=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <3f03a2d225c668283110ad5f9ff159ba4591e2c7
  5. Affected versionversion=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <430521af7fe8a9c08f5a2554224a35f11f51d99e
  6. Affected versionversion=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <47b3af24de5fbed4bf2952de0f5294ef1a338a26
  7. Affected versionversion=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <c9c9b37f8c5505224e8d206184df3bb668ee00cf

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=3.18; version=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <01ace27af47801dd7f6b839e782b62863af979cc; version=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <0ca505346c5e2905ab7b5313af801fcf38f594a8; version=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <3f03a2d225c668283110ad5f9ff159ba4591e2c7; version=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <430521af7fe8a9c08f5a2554224a35f11f51d99e; version=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <47b3af24de5fbed4bf2952de0f5294ef1a338a26; version=34666d467cbf1e2e3c7bb15a63eccfb582cdd71f <c9c9b37f8c5505224e8d206184df3bb668ee00cf

Published CVSS scores

7.8LinuxCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 9, 2026Sep 15, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 15, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-825Expired Pointer Dereference
T1068Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

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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