GCVE Workshop - 22 September 2026 (14:00-18:00), Luxembourg Before The Vulnopticon Conference - Registration

CVE-2026-72254 (GCVE-0-2026-72254)

Vulnerability from cvelistv5 – Published: 2026-08-15 05:54 – Updated: 2026-08-17 05:42
VLAI
Title
netfilter: nft_fib: reject fib expression on the netdev egress hook
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfilter: nft_fib: reject fib expression on the netdev egress hook A fib expression in a netdev egress base chain dereferences nft_in(pkt), NULL on the transmit path, causing a NULL pointer dereference at eval. nft_fib_validate() masks the hook with NF_INET_* values, but netdev hook numbers are a separate enum that aliases them (NF_NETDEV_EGRESS == NF_INET_LOCAL_IN), so an egress chain passes validation and then faults. Add nft_fib_netdev_validate() that limits each result/flag to the netdev hook where the device it reads exists: the input-device cases (OIF, OIFNAME, ADDRTYPE with F_IIF) to ingress, the output-device case (ADDRTYPE with F_OIF) to egress, ADDRTYPE with no device flag to both. Also restrict nft_fib_validate() to NFPROTO_IPV4/IPV6/INET so its NF_INET_* masks are not applied to another family's hooks.
Severity
7.5 (High)
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Assigner
References
Impacted products
Vendor Product Version CPE status
Linux Linux Affected: 42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96 , < 4fee43759b489559a491f7c95f9bfa7a1d0c7a10 (git)
Affected: 42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96 , < 568931f26af4727a51e8521f72efbc78d3b82410 (git)
Affected: 42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96 , < d01c913febead04a01a5f3a6374d1f45504dc523 (git)
Affected: 42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96 , < f68305267ebda7e839b5e8f77e8d77535a3d5a0f (git)
Affected: 42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96 , < d07955dd34ecae17d35d8c7d0a273a3fba653a8c (git)
guessed Create a notification for this product.
Linux Linux Affected: 5.16
Unaffected: 0 , < 5.16 (semver)
Unaffected: 6.6.148 , ≤ 6.6.* (semver)
Unaffected: 6.12.101 , ≤ 6.12.* (semver)
Unaffected: 6.18.42 , ≤ 6.18.* (semver)
Unaffected: 7.1.5 , ≤ 7.1.* (semver)
Unaffected: 7.2 , ≤ * (original_commit_for_fix)
guessed Create a notification for this product.
Show details on NVD website
To clipboard 

{
  "containers": {
    "cna": {
      "affected": [
        {
          "defaultStatus": "unaffected",
          "product": "Linux",
          "programFiles": [
            "net/netfilter/nft_fib.c",
            "net/netfilter/nft_fib_netdev.c"
          ],
          "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
          "vendor": "Linux",
          "versions": [
            {
              "lessThan": "4fee43759b489559a491f7c95f9bfa7a1d0c7a10",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96",
              "versionType": "git"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "568931f26af4727a51e8521f72efbc78d3b82410",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96",
              "versionType": "git"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "d01c913febead04a01a5f3a6374d1f45504dc523",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96",
              "versionType": "git"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "f68305267ebda7e839b5e8f77e8d77535a3d5a0f",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96",
              "versionType": "git"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "d07955dd34ecae17d35d8c7d0a273a3fba653a8c",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96",
              "versionType": "git"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "defaultStatus": "affected",
          "product": "Linux",
          "programFiles": [
            "net/netfilter/nft_fib.c",
            "net/netfilter/nft_fib_netdev.c"
          ],
          "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
          "vendor": "Linux",
          "versions": [
            {
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "5.16"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "5.16",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "0",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "6.6.*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "6.6.148",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "6.12.*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "6.12.101",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "6.18.*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "6.18.42",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "7.1.*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "7.1.5",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "7.2",
              "versionType": "original_commit_for_fix"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "cpeApplicability": [
        {
          "nodes": [
            {
              "cpeMatch": [
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "6.6.148",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.16",
                  "vulnerable": true
                },
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "6.12.101",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.16",
                  "vulnerable": true
                },
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "6.18.42",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.16",
                  "vulnerable": true
                },
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "7.1.5",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.16",
                  "vulnerable": true
                },
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "7.2",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.16",
                  "vulnerable": true
                }
              ],
              "negate": false,
              "operator": "OR"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "descriptions": [
        {
          "lang": "en",
          "value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nnetfilter: nft_fib: reject fib expression on the netdev egress hook\n\nA fib expression in a netdev egress base chain dereferences nft_in(pkt),\nNULL on the transmit path, causing a NULL pointer dereference at eval.\nnft_fib_validate() masks the hook with NF_INET_* values, but netdev hook\nnumbers are a separate enum that aliases them (NF_NETDEV_EGRESS ==\nNF_INET_LOCAL_IN), so an egress chain passes validation and then faults.\n\nAdd nft_fib_netdev_validate() that limits each result/flag to the netdev\nhook where the device it reads exists: the input-device cases (OIF,\nOIFNAME, ADDRTYPE with F_IIF) to ingress, the output-device case (ADDRTYPE\nwith F_OIF) to egress, ADDRTYPE with no device flag to both. Also restrict\nnft_fib_validate() to NFPROTO_IPV4/IPV6/INET so its NF_INET_* masks are\nnot applied to another family\u0027s hooks."
        }
      ],
      "metrics": [
        {
          "cvssV3_1": {
            "baseScore": 7.5,
            "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
            "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H",
            "version": "3.1"
          },
          "scenarios": [
            {
              "lang": "en",
              "value": "AV:N - Once a netdev egress fib rule is installed, evaluation runs on the packet transmit datapath (nf_hook_egress in __dev_queue_xmit); a remote peer can trigger it by causing the host to send matching IPv4/IPv6 traffic through the hooked interface, matching prior netfilter CNA treatment of pre-deployed nftables rules (e.g. CVE-2026-52998).\nAC:L - No race or uncontrollable victim state is required; with an affected egress fib rule present, the attacker reliably triggers the NULL dereference on the next matching outbound packet by controlling protocol headers and normal connection traffic.\nPR:N - Runtime exploitation needs only network traffic through the netdev egress hook; although installing the fib rule requires CAP_NET_ADMIN, validation incorrectly accepts it as legal, so orchestration or administrators can deploy it and remote attackers need no target credentials or local privileges.\nUI:N - No victim interaction is required beyond ordinary network traffic processing; the kernel automatically evaluates the fib expression on egress without mounts, file opens, or user prompts.\nS:U - Impact is a kernel NULL-pointer fault and host-wide denial of service within the same kernel/network-filtering security authority; it does not constitute VM escape, IOMMU bypass, or another cross-authority boundary change.\nC:N - The failure mode is a NULL pointer dereference of nft_in(pkt) on egress (in is NULL in nf_hook_state_init); there is no use-after-free, out-of-bounds read, or other attacker-controlled memory disclosure primitive.\nI:N - The bug does not corrupt writable memory or provide control-flow hijack; it only dereferences a NULL input device pointer during fib lookup/skipping and cannot modify kernel or user data beyond the immediate fault.\nA:H - The NULL dereference in nft_fib_netdev_eval/nft_fib4_eval/nft_fib6_eval on netdev egress causes a kernel oops/panic-class fault during packet transmission, denying system availability until reboot."
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "providerMetadata": {
        "dateUpdated": "2026-08-17T05:42:07.408Z",
        "orgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
        "shortName": "Linux"
      },
      "references": [
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4fee43759b489559a491f7c95f9bfa7a1d0c7a10"
        },
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/568931f26af4727a51e8521f72efbc78d3b82410"
        },
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d01c913febead04a01a5f3a6374d1f45504dc523"
        },
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f68305267ebda7e839b5e8f77e8d77535a3d5a0f"
        },
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d07955dd34ecae17d35d8c7d0a273a3fba653a8c"
        }
      ],
      "title": "netfilter: nft_fib: reject fib expression on the netdev egress hook",
      "x_generator": {
        "engine": "bippy-1.2.0"
      }
    }
  },
  "cveMetadata": {
    "assignerOrgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
    "assignerShortName": "Linux",
    "cveId": "CVE-2026-72254",
    "datePublished": "2026-08-15T05:54:42.239Z",
    "dateReserved": "2026-08-09T03:40:39.915Z",
    "dateUpdated": "2026-08-17T05:42:07.408Z",
    "state": "PUBLISHED"
  },
  "dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
  "dataVersion": "5.2",
  "vulnerability-lookup:meta": {
    "epss": {
      "cve": "CVE-2026-72254",
      "date": "2026-09-05",
      "epss": "0.00595",
      "percentile": "0.46028"
    },
    "nvd": "{\"cve\":{\"id\":\"CVE-2026-72254\",\"sourceIdentifier\":\"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67\",\"published\":\"2026-08-15T06:21:52.910\",\"lastModified\":\"2026-08-17T06:18:27.610\",\"vulnStatus\":\"Received\",\"cveTags\":[],\"descriptions\":[{\"lang\":\"en\",\"value\":\"In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\\n\\nnetfilter: nft_fib: reject fib expression on the netdev egress hook\\n\\nA fib expression in a netdev egress base chain dereferences nft_in(pkt),\\nNULL on the transmit path, causing a NULL pointer dereference at eval.\\nnft_fib_validate() masks the hook with NF_INET_* values, but netdev hook\\nnumbers are a separate enum that aliases them (NF_NETDEV_EGRESS ==\\nNF_INET_LOCAL_IN), so an egress chain passes validation and then faults.\\n\\nAdd nft_fib_netdev_validate() that limits each result/flag to the netdev\\nhook where the device it reads exists: the input-device cases (OIF,\\nOIFNAME, ADDRTYPE with F_IIF) to ingress, the output-device case (ADDRTYPE\\nwith F_OIF) to egress, ADDRTYPE with no device flag to both. Also restrict\\nnft_fib_validate() to NFPROTO_IPV4/IPV6/INET so its NF_INET_* masks are\\nnot applied to another family\u0027s hooks.\"}],\"affected\":[{\"source\":\"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67\",\"affectedData\":[{\"vendor\":\"Linux\",\"product\":\"Linux\",\"defaultStatus\":\"unaffected\",\"programFiles\":[\"net/netfilter/nft_fib.c\",\"net/netfilter/nft_fib_netdev.c\"],\"repo\":\"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git\",\"versions\":[{\"version\":\"42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96\",\"lessThan\":\"4fee43759b489559a491f7c95f9bfa7a1d0c7a10\",\"versionType\":\"git\",\"status\":\"affected\"},{\"version\":\"42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96\",\"lessThan\":\"568931f26af4727a51e8521f72efbc78d3b82410\",\"versionType\":\"git\",\"status\":\"affected\"},{\"version\":\"42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96\",\"lessThan\":\"d01c913febead04a01a5f3a6374d1f45504dc523\",\"versionType\":\"git\",\"status\":\"affected\"},{\"version\":\"42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96\",\"lessThan\":\"f68305267ebda7e839b5e8f77e8d77535a3d5a0f\",\"versionType\":\"git\",\"status\":\"affected\"},{\"version\":\"42df6e1d221dddc0f2acf2be37e68d553ad65f96\",\"lessThan\":\"d07955dd34ecae17d35d8c7d0a273a3fba653a8c\",\"versionType\":\"git\",\"status\":\"affected\"}]},{\"vendor\":\"Linux\",\"product\":\"Linux\",\"defaultStatus\":\"affected\",\"programFiles\":[\"net/netfilter/nft_fib.c\",\"net/netfilter/nft_fib_netdev.c\"],\"repo\":\"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git\",\"versions\":[{\"version\":\"5.16\",\"status\":\"affected\"},{\"version\":\"0\",\"lessThan\":\"5.16\",\"versionType\":\"semver\",\"status\":\"unaffected\"},{\"version\":\"6.6.148\",\"lessThanOrEqual\":\"6.6.*\",\"versionType\":\"semver\",\"status\":\"unaffected\"},{\"version\":\"6.12.101\",\"lessThanOrEqual\":\"6.12.*\",\"versionType\":\"semver\",\"status\":\"unaffected\"},{\"version\":\"6.18.42\",\"lessThanOrEqual\":\"6.18.*\",\"versionType\":\"semver\",\"status\":\"unaffected\"},{\"version\":\"7.1.5\",\"lessThanOrEqual\":\"7.1.*\",\"versionType\":\"semver\",\"status\":\"unaffected\"},{\"version\":\"7.2\",\"lessThanOrEqual\":\"*\",\"versionType\":\"original_commit_for_fix\",\"status\":\"unaffected\"}]}]}],\"metrics\":{\"cvssMetricV31\":[{\"source\":\"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67\",\"type\":\"Secondary\",\"cvssData\":{\"version\":\"3.1\",\"vectorString\":\"CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H\",\"baseScore\":7.5,\"baseSeverity\":\"HIGH\",\"attackVector\":\"NETWORK\",\"attackComplexity\":\"LOW\",\"privilegesRequired\":\"NONE\",\"userInteraction\":\"NONE\",\"scope\":\"UNCHANGED\",\"confidentialityImpact\":\"NONE\",\"integrityImpact\":\"NONE\",\"availabilityImpact\":\"HIGH\"},\"exploitabilityScore\":3.9,\"impactScore\":3.6}]},\"references\":[{\"url\":\"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4fee43759b489559a491f7c95f9bfa7a1d0c7a10\",\"source\":\"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67\"},{\"url\":\"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/568931f26af4727a51e8521f72efbc78d3b82410\",\"source\":\"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67\"},{\"url\":\"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d01c913febead04a01a5f3a6374d1f45504dc523\",\"source\":\"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67\"},{\"url\":\"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d07955dd34ecae17d35d8c7d0a273a3fba653a8c\",\"source\":\"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67\"},{\"url\":\"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f68305267ebda7e839b5e8f77e8d77535a3d5a0f\",\"source\":\"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67\"}]}}",
    "redhat_vex": {
      "aggregate_severity": "Low",
      "current_release_date": "2026-08-19T05:24:46+00:00",
      "cve": "CVE-2026-72254",
      "id": "CVE-2026-72254",
      "initial_release_date": "2026-08-15T00:00:00+00:00",
      "product_status:known_affected": "184",
      "product_status:known_not_affected": "90",
      "source": "Red Hat CSAF VEX",
      "status": "final",
      "title": "kernel: netfilter: nft_fib: reject fib expression on the netdev egress hook",
      "url": "https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-72254.json",
      "version": "3"
    }
  }
}



Log in or create an account to share your comment.




Tags
Taxonomy of the tags.





Forecast uses a logistic model when the trend is rising, or an exponential decay model when the trend is falling. Fitted via linearized least squares.

Sightings

Author Source Type Date Other

Nomenclature

  • Seen: The vulnerability was mentioned, discussed, or observed by the user.
  • Confirmed: The vulnerability has been validated from an analyst's perspective.
  • Published Proof of Concept: A public proof of concept is available for this vulnerability.
  • Exploited: The vulnerability was observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Patched: The vulnerability was observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Not exploited: The vulnerability was not observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Not confirmed: The user expressed doubt about the validity of the vulnerability.
  • Not patched: The vulnerability was not observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.


Detection rules are retrieved from Rulezet.