What is CVE-2026-45966?

CVE-2026-45966 is a Medium severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10, classified as a NULL Pointer Dereference flaw (CWE-476), affecting Linux kernel versions from 6.17 onward and patched in 6.18.14, 6.19.4 and 7.0. CVE-2026-45966 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2026-45966?

CVE-2026-45966 has a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10, rated Medium severity. The vector string is CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.

Is there a patch available for CVE-2026-45966?

Yes, CVE-2026-45966 has been patched. Fixed versions include 6.18.14, 6.19.4 and 7.0. If you are running Linux kernel 6.17 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.

Is CVE-2026-45966 actively exploited?

CVE-2026-45966 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

What is NULL Pointer Dereference (CWE-476)?

The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL, typically causing a crash. See MITRE CWE for full details: https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/476.html

CVE-2026-45966

Medium

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: apparmor: fix NULL pointer dereference in __unix_needs_revalidation When receiving file descriptors via SCM_RIGHTS, both the socket pointer and the socket's sk pointer can be NULL during socket setup or teardown, causing NULL pointer dereferences in __unix_needs_revalidation(). This is a regression in AppArmor 5.0.0 (kernel 6.17+) where the new __unix_needs_revalidation() function was added without proper NULL checks. The crash manifests as: BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0x0000000000000018 RIP: aa_file_perm+0xb7/0x3b0 (or +0xbe/0x3b0, +0xc0/0x3e0) Call Trace: apparmor_file_receive+0x42/0x80 security_file_receive+0x2e/0x50 receive_fd+0x1d/0xf0 scm_detach_fds+0xad/0x1c0 The function dereferences sock->sk->sk_family without checking if either sock or sock->sk is NULL first. Add NULL checks for both sock and sock->sk before accessing sk_family.

Package Linux Kernel

Published 2026-05-27

Last modified 2026-06-16

CVSS version 3.1

Patch available

Yes

CVSS 3.1 score

5.5

out of 10

Medium

Attack Vector

Local

Attack Complexity

Low

Privileges Required

Low

User Interaction

None

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

Low

Integrity

None

Availability

High

Vector string

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Weakness type

CWE-476

CVE-2026-45966 is a NULL Pointer Dereference vulnerability

What is NULL Pointer Dereference?

The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL, typically causing a crash. Learn more on MITRE CWE

Affected versions

Linux kernel versions 6.17 and later are affected. Fixed in 6.18.14, 6.19.4, 7.0 and their respective stable series.

Affected from

≥ 6.17

Fixed in

✓ 6.18.14 6.18.x ✓ 6.19.4 6.19.x ✓ 7.0

References

3 total

Kernel Git
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e2938ad00b21340c0362562dfedd7cfec0554d67

Patch
Kernel Git
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e85bc9101afc4202aa2269967ce9d3ffbecd0994

Patch
Kernel Git
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/fea017a7f6abe179decf575a2d8464c74edb3964

Patch

Details

CVE ID CVE-2026-45966

Severity Medium

CVSS score 5.5 / 10

CVSS version 3.1

Published 2026-05-27

Modified 2026-06-16

KEV No

Patch

Yes

Package linux

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-45966?

CVE-2026-45966 is a Medium severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10 , classified as a NULL Pointer Dereference flaw (CWE-476) . It affects Linux kernel versions from 6.17 onward and has been patched in 6.18.14, 6.19.4 and 7.0. CVE-2026-45966 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
What is the CVSS score for CVE-2026-45966?

CVE-2026-45966 has a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10, rated Medium severity (CVSS 3.1). The vector string is CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.
Is there a patch available for CVE-2026-45966?

Yes. CVE-2026-45966 has been patched. Fixed versions include 6.18.14, 6.19.4 and 7.0. If you are running Linux kernel 6.17 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.
Is CVE-2026-45966 actively exploited?

No. CVE-2026-45966 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.