CVE-2026-46300

net: skbuff: preserve shared-frag marker during coalescing

HIGH
7.8
CVSS Score
Published: May 23, 2026 at 11:44 AM UTC
Updated: October 29, 2026 at 05:30 PM UTC
10 products affected across 3 vendorsLinux KernelEnterprise LinuxEnterprise Linux Eus· also runs on 1 platform

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Severity
HIGH7.8
Exploitation
CISA KEV
Exploit prediction
EPSS 16%
SSVC
Active

Actively Exploited

CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) Catalog

EPSS Score16.1%

EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) estimates a 16.1% chance this CVE is exploited in the wild within the next 30 days — higher than 97% of all CVEs. It complements CVSS: a high EPSS on a mid-severity CVE can still be urgent.

Linux Kernel contains a missing initialization of a variable vulnerability that could allow for unintended modification of page-cache-backed data via failure to preserve the shared-fragment marker during socket buffer coalescing, causing ESP input processing to decrypt shared fragments in place. This vulnerability can be chained with CVE-2026-109618 and CVE-2026-109619 to implant PHP webshells and run commands as root.

Required Action
Apply mitigations in accordance with vendor instructions, ensuring compliance with CISA’s BOD 26-04 Prioritizing Security Updates Based on Risk (see URL in Notes) guidance and CISA’s “Forensics Triage Requirements” (see URL in Notes). Follow applicable BOD 26-04 guidance for cloud services or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable. Stakeholders are responsible for evaluating each asset's internet exposure and ensuring adherence to BOD 26-04 patching guidelines.
Ransomware Use
Unknown
Added to KEV
Oct 28, 2026
Remediation Due
Oct 31, 2026
Due today

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: skbuff: propagate shared-frag marker through frag-transfer helpers Two frag-transfer helpers (__pskb_copy_fclone() and skb_shift()) fail to propagate the SKBFL_SHARED_FRAG bit in skb_shinfo()->flags when moving frags from source to destination. __pskb_copy_fclone() defers the rest of the shinfo metadata to skb_copy_header() after copying frag descriptors, but that helper only carries over gso_{size,segs, type} and never touches skb_shinfo()->flags; skb_shift() moves frag descriptors directly and leaves flags untouched. As a result, the destination skb keeps a reference to the same externally-owned or page-cache-backed pages while reporting skb_has_shared_frag() as false. The mismatch is harmful in any in-place writer that uses skb_has_shared_frag() to decide whether shared pages must be detoured through skb_cow_data(). ESP input is one such writer (esp4.c, esp6.c), and a single nft 'dup to <local>' rule -- or any other nf_dup_ipv4() / xt_TEE caller -- is enough to land a pskb_copy()'d skb in esp_input() with the marker stripped, letting an unprivileged user write into the page cache of a root-owned read-only file via authencesn-ESN stray writes. Set SKBFL_SHARED_FRAG on the destination whenever frag descriptors were actually moved from the source. skb_copy() and skb_copy_expand() share skb_copy_header() too but linearize all paged data into freshly allocated head storage and emerge with nr_frags == 0, so skb_has_shared_frag() returns false on its own; they need no change. The same omission exists in skb_gro_receive() and skb_gro_receive_list(). The former moves the incoming skb's frag descriptors into the accumulator's last sub-skb via two paths (a direct frag-move loop and the head_frag + memcpy path); the latter chains the incoming skb whole onto p's frag_list. Downstream skb_segment() reads only skb_shinfo(p)->flags, and skb_segment_list() reuses each sub-skb's shinfo as the nskb -- both p and lp must carry the marker. The same omission also exists in tcp_clone_payload(), which builds an MTU probe skb by moving frag descriptors from skbs on sk_write_queue into a freshly allocated nskb. The helper falls into the same family and warrants the same fix for consistency; no TCP TX-side in-place writer is currently known to reach a user page through this gap, but a future consumer depending on the marker would regress silently. The same omission exists in skb_segment(): the per-iteration flag merge takes only head_skb's flag, and the inner switch that rebinds frag_skb to list_skb on head_skb-frags exhaustion does not fold the new frag_skb's flag into nskb. Fold frag_skb's flag at both sites so segments drawing frags from frag_list members carry the marker.

Affected

Our own answer: ranges merged, affected separated from platform-only, with confidence and review flags.

3.9 ≤ v ≤ 5.10.2575.11 ≤ v < 5.15.2085.16 ≤ v < 6.1.1746.13 ≤ v < 6.18.336.19 ≤ v < 7.0.106.2 ≤ v < 6.6.1416.7 ≤ v < 6.12.917.17.1 rc17.1 rc27.1 rc37.1 rc4cef401de7be8c4e155c6746bfccf721a4fa5fab9
Vendor states this is fixed in 2f2b16022a2e10ca7bccfb98db5ed2ec0f72641c (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 3599e6b3cc1ada96883d496a50a210d3afbb6987 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 3884358a9286b17f389a72b1426fc4547c23c111 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 3bd9e113d50034db99d7ef69fd8e5242d15e414a (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 760e1addc27ba1a7beb4a0a7e8b3e9ec49e7a34e (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 78bf6b6bb19541d19fbda6242e7cfe2c682763c0 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 9d3e5fd19fe1063bf607219e8562fbd567b8e8d5 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in f84eca5817390257cef78013d0112481c503b4a3 (fixed)
Vendor states this is fixed in 3.9 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 5.10.257 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 5.15.208 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 6.1.174 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 6.12.91 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 6.18.33 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 6.6.141 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 7.0.10 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 7.1 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:4.18.0-305.192.1.el8_4 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:4.18.0-372.193.1.el8_6 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:4.18.0-477.143.1.el8_8 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:4.18.0-553.125.1.el8_10 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:4.18.0-553.125.1.rt7.466.el8_10 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:5.14.0-284.172.1.el9_2 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:5.14.0-284.172.1.rt14.457.el9_2 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:5.14.0-427.126.1.el9_4 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:5.14.0-570.116.1.el9_6 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:5.14.0-687.10.1.el9_8 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:5.14.0-70.180.1.el9_0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:5.14.0-70.180.1.rt21.252.el9_0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:6.12.0-211.16.1.el10_2 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:6.12.0-55.75.1.el10_0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 6 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 7 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 8 (unaffected)
4.12 ≤ v < 4.12.914.13 ≤ v < 4.13.674.14 ≤ v < 4.14.684.15 ≤ v < 4.15.654.16 ≤ v < 4.16.634.17 ≤ v < 4.17.554.18 ≤ v < 4.18.434.19 ≤ v < 4.19.334.20 ≤ v < 4.20.244.21 ≤ v < 4.21.17
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:4.21.0-202605142021.p2.geab2218.assembly.stream.el10 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 0:5.14.0-570.116.1.el9_6 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 4.19.9.6.202606031700-0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 4.20.9.6.202605270908-0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 4.21.9.6.202606030721-0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 412.86.202605271418-0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 413.92.202605271328-0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 414.92.202606231112-0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 415.92.202606030318-0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 416.94.202605200242-0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 416.94.202606051757-0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 417.94.202606250942-0 (unaffected)
Vendor states this is fixed in 418.94.202605260517-0 (unaffected)
3.1.5 ≤ v ≤ 3.1.63.1.53.1.6
Affected range stops below V3.1.7, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
v ≥ V3.1.5V3.1.6 ≤ v < V3.1.73.1.53.1.6
Affected range stops below V3.1.7, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement
v ≥ V3.1.5V3.1.6 ≤ v < V3.1.73.1.53.1.6
Affected range stops below V3.1.7, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement

Runs on — not affected

The affected product only carries this flaw when running on these platforms. The platforms themselves are not vulnerable.

SSVC — Action Prioritization

SSVCActiveNot automatableTotal impact

SSVC signals action urgency (what to patch first), separate from CVSS which measures severity.

CVSS

7.8HIGHLinux
Vector?

Quick Info

StatusANALYZED
CWE
CWE-787CWE-123CWE-456

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