Vulnerability in Linux kernel (CVE-2026-52981)
Summary
Vulnerability in Linux kernel (CVE-2026-52981). Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure.
Original description
The description as published by the source.
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
neigh: let neigh_xmit take skb ownership
neigh_xmit always releases the skb, except when no neighbour table is
found. But even the first added user of neigh_xmit (mpls) relied on
neigh_xmit to release the skb (or queue it for tx).
sashiko reported:
If neigh_xmit() is called with an uninitialized neighbor table (for
example, NEIGH_ND_TABLE when IPv6 is disabled), it returns -EAFNOSUPPORT
and bypasses its internal out_kfree_skb error path. Because the return
value of neigh_xmit() is ignored here, does this leak the SKB?
Assume full ownership and remove the last code path that doesn't
xmit or free skb.
Source: GitHub Security Advisories (Global) NVD GitHub Advisory
Auto-generated summary
Assembled by SecPulse from the source data (CVSS, CWE, affected versions) using templates — no AI involved. Check the original description and references below for exact details.
A vulnerability tracked as CVE-2026-52981 has been found in Linux kernel.
Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure. CVSS score: 7.5/10.
What to do: apply the vendor's official patched release.
If unsure, ask your IT team or search "Linux kernel CVE-2026-52981" on the vendor's site.
CVE-2026-52981 (Linux kernel) — CWE-401 / CVSS v3 7.5
Attack vector: remote (network-reachable) / unauthenticated / no user interaction
Plan: 1) Audit SBOM/dependencies, 2) Stage→prod upgrade, 3) Add WAF/proxy monitoring on affected endpoints, 4) Hunt IOCs in logs.
Refs: see the GHSA / vendor advisory / patched release linked on this page.
A vulnerability (CWE-401) exists in Linux kernel.
Check the vendor advisory for the affected versions of Linux kernel.
Severity: High (CVSS 7.5/10). Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure.
Update to the patched release per vendor advisory.
Until the patch is applied: disable the affected feature, apply WAF rules, or restrict access via network ACLs.
Search webserver/proxy logs for unusual request patterns matching this CVE's known IOCs. Audit SBOM/dependencies to find affected services.
Response actions
Concrete steps and command examples for SOC/SRE teams to execute in order
-
1Identify exposure identify
Audit SBOM/dependencies for affected components.資産台帳・SBOM・依存マニフェストで Linux kernel を使っているサービスとバージョンを洗い出す。
-
2Post-deployment verification verify
Confirm patched version is live in productionパッチ適用後、ステージングで PoC または同等の悪用パターンを再現して脆弱性が閉じたことを確認。本番ではアクセスログ・WAF でアラート再発が無いか継続監視。
Affected packages
Fix status by distribution
Fixed packages published by each distribution for this CVE
- BellSoft Alpaquita BELL-CVE-2026-52981 linux-lts Fixed in: 6.1.175-r0
- Debian DEBIAN-CVE-2026-52981 linux Fixed in: 6.1.176-1
- Ubuntu UBUNTU-CVE-2026-52981 linux-aws
References
- advisory nvd.nist.gov
- advisory github.com
- package git.kernel.org
- web git.kernel.org
- web git.kernel.org
- web git.kernel.org
- web git.kernel.org
- web git.kernel.org
- web git.kernel.org
- web github.com