What is CVE-2026-45998?

CVE-2026-45998 is a High severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 7.8 out of 10, classified as a Use After Free flaw (CWE-416), affecting Linux kernel versions from 6.2 onward and patched in 6.6.140, 6.12.86, 6.18.27 and others. CVE-2026-45998 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2026-45998?

CVE-2026-45998 has a CVSS score of 7.8 out of 10, rated High severity. The vector string is CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.

Is there a patch available for CVE-2026-45998?

Yes, CVE-2026-45998 has been patched. Fixed versions include 6.6.140, 6.12.86, 6.18.27 and others. If you are running Linux kernel 6.2 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.

Is CVE-2026-45998 actively exploited?

CVE-2026-45998 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

What is Use After Free (CWE-416)?

The product references memory after it has been freed, which may cause it to crash, use unexpected values, or execute code. See MITRE CWE for full details: https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/416.html

CVE-2026-45998

High

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: rxrpc: Fix potential UAF after skb_unshare() failure If skb_unshare() fails to unshare a packet due to allocation failure in rxrpc_input_packet(), the skb pointer in the parent (rxrpc_io_thread()) will be NULL'd out. This will likely cause the call to trace_rxrpc_rx_done() to oops. Fix this by moving the unsharing down to where rxrpc_input_call_event() calls rxrpc_input_call_packet(). There are a number of places prior to that where we ignore DATA packets for a variety of reasons (such as the call already being complete) for which an unshare is then avoided. And with that, rxrpc_input_packet() doesn't need to take a pointer to the pointer to the packet, so change that to just a pointer.

Package Linux Kernel

Published 2026-05-27

Last modified 2026-07-15

CVSS version 3.1

Patch available

Yes

CVSS 3.1 score

7.8

out of 10

High

Attack Vector

Local

Attack Complexity

Low

Privileges Required

Low

User Interaction

None

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

High

Vector string

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

Weakness type

CWE-416

CVE-2026-45998 is a Use After Free vulnerability

What is Use After Free?

The product references memory after it has been freed, which may cause it to crash, use unexpected values, or execute code. Learn more on MITRE CWE

Affected versions

Linux kernel versions 6.2 and later are affected. Fixed in 6.6.140, 6.12.86, 6.18.27, 7.0.4, 7.1 and their respective stable series.

Affected from

≥ 6.2

Fixed in

✓ 6.6.140 6.6.x ✓ 6.12.86 6.12.x ✓ 6.18.27 6.18.x ✓ 7.0.4 7.0.x ✓ 7.1

References

9 total

Kernel Git
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1f2740150f904bfa60e4bad74d65add3ccb5e7f8

Patch
Kernel Git
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8fde6296c4d4da2be7ab761305ab7f232b94eefd

Patch
Kernel Git
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/996b0487b3cdda4c91811dbb1c9564626bc840bd

Patch
Kernel Git
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/bf20f46d94f1db38e6ffc0ca204a5fe0de01b495

Patch
Kernel Git
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e3bf143b1e98fb3d6d9e6825bcd683974d478e8c

Patch

Showing 5 of 9 references View all on NVD

Details

CVE ID CVE-2026-45998

Severity High

CVSS score 7.8 / 10

CVSS version 3.1

Published 2026-05-27

Modified 2026-07-15

KEV No

Patch

Yes

Package linux

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-45998?

CVE-2026-45998 is a High severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 7.8 out of 10 , classified as an Use After Free flaw (CWE-416) . It affects Linux kernel versions from 6.2 onward and has been patched in 6.6.140, 6.12.86, 6.18.27 and others. CVE-2026-45998 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
What is the CVSS score for CVE-2026-45998?

CVE-2026-45998 has a CVSS score of 7.8 out of 10, rated High severity (CVSS 3.1). The vector string is CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
Is there a patch available for CVE-2026-45998?

Yes. CVE-2026-45998 has been patched. Fixed versions include 6.6.140, 6.12.86, 6.18.27 and others. If you are running Linux kernel 6.2 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.
Is CVE-2026-45998 actively exploited?

No. CVE-2026-45998 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.