CVE Intelligence
Critical Memory corruption

CVE-2026-52986 — Linux kernel netfilter SIP conntrack port parsing NULL pointer dereference

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfilter: nf_conntrack_sip: don't use simple_strtoul Replace unsafe port parsing in epaddr_len(), ct_sip_parse_header_uri(), and ct_sip_parse_request() with a new sip_parse_port() helper that validates each digit against the buffer limit, eliminating the use of simple_strtoul() which assumes NUL-terminated strings. The previous code dereferenced pointers without bounds checks after sip_parse_addr() and relied on simple_strtoul() on non-NUL-terminated skb data. A port that reaches the buffer limit without a trailing character is also rejected as malformed. Also get rid of all simple_strtoul() usage in conntrack, prefer a stricter version instead. There are intentional changes: - Bail out if number is > UINT_MAX and indicate a failure, same for too long sequences. While we do accept 05535 as port 5535, we will not accept e.g. 'sip:10.0.0.1:005060'. While its syntactically valid under RFC 3261, we should restrict this to not waste cycles when presented with malformed packets with 64k '0' characters. - Force base 10 in ct_sip_parse_numerical_param(). This is used to fetch 'expire=' and 'rports='; both are expected to use base-10. - In nf_nat_sip.c, only accept the parsed value if its within the 1k-64k range. - epaddr_len now returns 0 if the port is invalid, as it already does for invalid ip addresses. This is intentional. nf_conntrack_sip performs lots of guesswork to find the right parts of the message to parse. Being stricter could break existing setups. Connection tracking helpers are designed to allow traffic to pass, not to block it. Based on an earlier patch from Jenny Guanni Qu <qguanni@gmail.com>.

Published Jun 24, 2026 · Updated Oct 15, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP, GitHub Security Advisories · CNA: Linux

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.
How the score was calculated
  • EPSS 0.6% (30-day exploitation probability)+7
  • 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.

Exploitation
Not confirmed
Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.
EPSS FIRST
0.62%
ahead of 48% of scored CVEs · Oct 14, 2026
Affects
Linux
Linux and 1 more
CVSS base
9.8
Critical · 3 source(s)

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)
  • 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.

  1. Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Linux Linux, Linux Linux Kernel).
  2. The attack is network-based and needs no privileges: restrict exposure (ACLs, VPN, WAF) until patched.
  3. Apply the fixed version or the patch documented under Remediation.
  4. 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.

VendorProductVersionsStatusSource
Linux Linux ≥ 05e3ced297fe755093140e7487e292fb7603316e and < 8cd0358379570003659186706e077929d6930c40version 2.6.26≥ 05e3ced297fe755093140e7487e292fb7603316e and < 8cf6809cddcbe301aedfc6b51bcd4944d45795f6≥ 05e3ced297fe755093140e7487e292fb7603316e and < 523762e3b6933fff81f01dfa3c60c0774044cdab≥ 05e3ced297fe755093140e7487e292fb7603316e and < 7df9863bf538a626e8a684e59cb2c43eac0ef3c8≥ 05e3ced297fe755093140e7487e292fb7603316e and < 9f69c323ae0ab517e595c2cc74e0ae0d9d085611≥ 05e3ced297fe755093140e7487e292fb7603316e and < ea2ecd29b8f4433e52607192ca91084f95787ca0≥ 05e3ced297fe755093140e7487e292fb7603316e and < b3264c977e79d8a25778d4fd11520f00fea1329c
and 1 more ≥ 05e3ced297fe755093140e7487e292fb7603316e and < 9c6afcb1c3cbb2c0da65b8515ac14d7273872f84
Vulnerable CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Linux Linux Kernel ≥ 2.6.26 and < 5.10.258version 7.1-rc1≥ 6.19 and < 7.0.10≥ 6.13 and < 6.18.33≥ 6.7 and < 6.12.91≥ 6.2 and < 6.6.141≥ 5.16 and < 6.1.175≥ 5.11 and < 5.15.209 Vulnerable NIST National Vulnerability Database

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

Every base score collected

Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.

ScoreVersionSeverityExpl.ImpactScored 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 — — GitHub, Inc. via GitHub Security Advisories
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.

CWE-476 · NULL Pointer Dereference

Other CVEs with this weakness →

EPSS over time FIRST

Oct 13, 2026 → Oct 14, 2026 · 2 reading(s) · max 0.62%

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.
web/proxy/WAF logsnetwork IDS/IPSendpoint telemetry (EDR)crash dumps

Analysis and videos

CVE-2026-52986: Linux kernel netfilter SIP conntrack port parsing NULL pointer dereference
A Linux kernel change in the netfilter SIP connection tracking helper (nf_conntrack_sip) replaces unsafe port parsing that relied on simple_strtoul() and dereferenced pointers without adequate bounds checks. The CNA classifies the issue as CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference) with a CVSS 3.1 score of 9.8 (critical). The record shows no CISA KEV listing and no confirmed exploitation in the sources consulted.

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

  • 2026
  • Affected products added · linux/linux
    Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • Record published
    Oct 13, 2026
  • Fix documented
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVSS changed · 9.8
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Source status changed · → Modified
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Record created in this database
    Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVE published
    Jun 24, 2026 · Linux

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

  • 2× References added · Oct 14, 2026 – Oct 15, 2026
  • 1× Official description updated · Oct 13, 2026 – Oct 13, 2026

References

12 on the record

Elsewhere on this site

Linux
every CVE for this vendor
Memory corruption
same class
CWE-476
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

  • CVE-2026-99999 ipv4: validate checksum_start before completing checksum 13h
  • CVE-2026-98432 ipv4: free inet_opt and ireq_opt after an RCU grace period 13h
  • CVE-2026-98431 RDMA/uverbs: Fix mmap_lock/disassociation_lock circular dependency 1d
  • CVE-2026-98430 RDMA/efa: Keep admin queues alive while IRQ is registered 1d
  • CVE-2026-98429 RDMA/efa: Keep EQ resources alive while IRQ is registered 1d
  • 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-2026-52986 is "Linux kernel netfilter SIP conntrack port parsing NULL pointer dereference", 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 0.62% 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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