CVE-2026-43186 — ipv6: ioam: fix heap buffer overflow in __ioam6_fill_trace_data()
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ipv6: ioam: fix heap buffer overflow in __ioam6_fill_trace_data() On the receive path, __ioam6_fill_trace_data() uses trace->nodelen to decide how much data to write for each node. It trusts this field as-is from the incoming packet, with no consistency check against trace->type (the 24-bit field that tells which data items are present). A crafted packet can set nodelen=0 while setting type bits 0-21, causing the function to write ~100 bytes past the allocated region (into skb_shared_info), which corrupts adjacent heap memory and leads to a kernel panic. Add a shared helper ioam6_trace_compute_nodelen() in ioam6.c to derive the expected nodelen from the type field, and use it: - in ioam6_iptunnel.c (send path, existing validation) to replace the open-coded computation; - in exthdrs.c (receive path, ipv6_hop_ioam) to drop packets whose nodelen is inconsistent with the type field, before any data is written. Per RFC 9197, bits 12-21 are each short (4-octet) fields, so they are included in IOAM6_MASK_SHORT_FIELDS (changed from 0xff100000 to 0xff1ffc00).
Who exploits it and how urgent it is
A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.
How the score was calculated
- EPSS 0.9% (30-day exploitation probability)+9
- Technical severity (critical)+10
The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).
Triage
Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.
Remediation
Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.
- Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
- Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
- Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
- Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
- Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
- Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
- Documented patch — git.kernel.org (NIST National Vulnerability Database)
First 24 hours
Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.
- Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Linux Linux, Linux Linux Kernel).
- The attack is network-based and needs no privileges: restrict exposure (ACLs, VPN, WAF) until patched.
- Apply the fixed version or the patch documented under Remediation.
- Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (memory corruption), errors and authentication anomalies.
Affected scope
Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.
| Vendor | Product | Versions | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | ≥ 9ee11f0fff205b4b3df9750bff5e94f97c71b6a0 and < f4d9d4b8fd839719d564651671e24c62c545c23b≥ 9ee11f0fff205b4b3df9750bff5e94f97c71b6a0 and < fb3c662fafebc5b9d74417ed1de8759f6bb72143≥ 9ee11f0fff205b4b3df9750bff5e94f97c71b6a0 and < 632d233cf2e64a46865ae2c064ae3c9df7c8864f≥ 9ee11f0fff205b4b3df9750bff5e94f97c71b6a0 and < 0591d6509c2ff13f09ea2998434aba0c0472e978≥ 9ee11f0fff205b4b3df9750bff5e94f97c71b6a0 and < e90346a2f1e8917d5760a44a1f61c44e3b36d96b≥ 9ee11f0fff205b4b3df9750bff5e94f97c71b6a0 and < ea3632aefc04205436868541638e26f4a74d5637≥ 9ee11f0fff205b4b3df9750bff5e94f97c71b6a0 and < 6db8b56eed62baacaf37486e83378a72635c04ccversion 5.15 | Vulnerable | CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP |
| Linux | Linux Kernel | ≥ 5.15 and < 5.15.202≥ 5.16 and < 6.1.165≥ 6.2 and < 6.6.128≥ 6.7 and < 6.12.75≥ 6.13 and < 6.18.16≥ 6.19 and < 6.19.6 | Vulnerable | NIST National Vulnerability Database |
Attack characteristics
The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.
Every base score collected
Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.
| Score | Version | Severity | Expl. | Impact | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9.8 | CVSS 3.1 | Critical | 3.9 | 5.9 | 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 via NIST National Vulnerability Database |
| 9.8 | CVSS 3.1 | Critical | — | — | Linux via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP |
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H (score shown at the top: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67) Weakness MITRE
Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.
EPSS over time FIRST
Oct 13, 2026 → Oct 15, 2026 · 3 reading(s) · max 0.86%
Detection
Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.
- Prioritize edge telemetry for the network-reachable component (proxy, WAF, IDS/IPS).
- Correlate service crashes/restarts with inbound traffic; repeated crashes may indicate attempts.
Timeline
What happened to this CVE, newest first.
- 2026
- Affected products added · linux/linux
- Record published
- Fix documented
- CVSS changed · 9.8
- Source status changed · → Analyzed
- Record created in this database
- CVE published
Source activity
Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.
- 1× Official description updated · Oct 13, 2026 – Oct 13, 2026
References
7 on the record
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/632d233cf2e64a46865ae2c064ae3c9df7c8864f
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/fb3c662fafebc5b9d74417ed1de8759f6bb72143
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/f4d9d4b8fd839719d564651671e24c62c545c23b
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/6db8b56eed62baacaf37486e83378a72635c04cc
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/e90346a2f1e8917d5760a44a1f61c44e3b36d96b
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/0591d6509c2ff13f09ea2998434aba0c0472e978
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/ea3632aefc04205436868541638e26f4a74d5637
Elsewhere on this site
Related CVEs (same products)
- Critical CVE-2026-99999 ipv4: validate checksum_start before completing checksum 15h
- Unknown CVE-2026-98432 ipv4: free inet_opt and ireq_opt after an RCU grace period 15h
- Unknown CVE-2026-98431 RDMA/uverbs: Fix mmap_lock/disassociation_lock circular dependency 1d
- Unknown CVE-2026-98430 RDMA/efa: Keep admin queues alive while IRQ is registered 1d
- Unknown CVE-2026-98429 RDMA/efa: Keep EQ resources alive while IRQ is registered 1d
- Unknown CVE-2026-98428 ALSA: usb: 6fire: Avoid embedded URBs 1d
Not in any source we poll
Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.
- No CISA SSVC assessment.
- No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
- No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
- No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.
Answered from this record
Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.
What should defenders know first?
CVE-2026-43186 is "ipv6: ioam: fix heap buffer overflow in __ioam6_fill_trace_data()", rated Critical. It affects Linux (Linux); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 9.8 describes technical severity. EPSS 0.86% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.
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