Kernel crash via raced IPv6 device dereference
Published Sep 11, 2026 · Updated Sep 11, 2026
NULL-pointer dereference in Linux IPv6 RPL routing allows attackers to crash the kernel during concurrent MTU changes and packet receipt. ipv6_rpl_srh_rcv() reads idev->cnf.rpl_seg_enabled without checking whether __in6_dev_get() returned NULL after addrconf_ifdown() cleared dev->ip6_ptr. Triggering requires RPL source-routing traffic to reach an interface while a privileged operation lowers its MTU below 1280; the resulting dereference can interrupt the host.
Summary
What happened
NULL-pointer dereference in Linux IPv6 RPL routing allows attackers to crash the kernel during concurrent MTU changes and packet receipt. ipv6_rpl_srh_rcv() reads idev->cnf.rpl_seg_enabled without checking whether __in6_dev_get() returned NULL after addrconf_ifdown() cleared dev->ip6_ptr. Triggering requires RPL source-routing traffic to reach an interface while a privileged operation lowers its MTU below 1280; the resulting dereference can interrupt the host.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-89561
- Published
- Sep 11, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 11, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- T1499
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- admin
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 11, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Sep 11, 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=5.7
- Affected versionversion=8610c7c6e3bd647ff98d21c8bc0580e77bc2f8b3 <63f50e9f90d0287ad66a0955ebfc2d3a9c044a1c
- Affected versionversion=8610c7c6e3bd647ff98d21c8bc0580e77bc2f8b3 <eab3a917cdcb182542a3aac6a0d2d30659ca9821
- Affected versionversion=8610c7c6e3bd647ff98d21c8bc0580e77bc2f8b3 <f826df95332c07380206dbd54178b6eefb311aba
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
No CVSS assessment is available in this record.
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- Upstream IPv6 RPL race reproducerproof of concept · demonstrated
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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