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CVE-2026-89789
gtp: add synchronize_net() in gtp_newlink() error path to prevent use-after-free
Published 2026-09-16 (33 days ago) by the Linux kernel CNA. Subsystem drivers/net. Debian urgency: not yet assigned.
What to do, per Debian release
Debian's own status for CVE-2026-89789 in every release this site tracks, and what each one means in practice. Every status below is the one the Debian Security Team publishes for this CVE. source
| Release | Status | Version | What this means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 12bookworm | fixedDLA-4841-1 · 2026-10-17 · text | 6.1.190-1 | Update the kernel and reboot. DLA-4841-1 shipped the fix on 2026-10-17, in 6.1.190-1. A running kernel keeps the old code until the machine restarts. |
| Debian 13trixie | fixedDSA-6528-1 · 2026-09-29 · text | 6.12.111-1 | Update the kernel and reboot. DSA-6528-1 shipped the fix on 2026-09-29, in 6.12.111-1. A running kernel keeps the old code until the machine restarts. |
| Debian 14forky | fixed | 7.2.6-1 | Update the kernel and reboot. Fixed in 7.2.6-1. A running kernel keeps the old code until the machine restarts. |
| Debian unstablesid | fixed | 7.2.6-1 | Update the kernel and reboot. Fixed in 7.2.6-1. A running kernel keeps the old code until the machine restarts. |
| Debian 12bookworm · linux-6.12 | fixedDLA-4817-1 · 2026-10-04 · text | 6.12.111-1~deb12u1 | Update the kernel and reboot. DLA-4817-1 shipped the fix on 2026-10-04, in 6.12.111-1~deb12u1. A running kernel keeps the old code until the machine restarts. |
The vulnerability
What the bug is
gtp_newlink()'s error path frees tid_hash and addr_hash without waiting for an RCU grace period after clearing sk_user_data. A concurrent gtp_encap_recv() in softirq may still hold the gtp_dev pointer obtained via rcu_dereference_sk_user_data() and access the freed memory. BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in gtp0_pdp_find+0x1f6/0x200 (gtp.c:152) Call Trace: <IRQ> gtp0_pdp_find+0x1f6/0x200 gtp_encap_recv+0x527/0x24b0 udp_queue_rcv_one_skb+0x75f/0xc10 Add synchronize_net() before the kfree calls in out_hashtable, which covers all error paths from both gtp_encap_enable() and gtp_create_sockets().
Where it lives
The fix touches these files. If the subsystem is one you do not use, the practical exposure is lower, though the package is still the vulnerable one.
drivers/net/gtp.c
- What this is
- GTP (GPRS Tunneling Protocol)MAINTAINERS section matched on drivers/net/gtp.c · osmocom-net-gprs@lists.osmocom.org · Maintained
- Kernel module
- gtp
Check it on the machine
grep -w CONFIG_GTP /boot/config-$(uname -r)Reads the booted kernel's own configuration, on the machine and nowhere else. =y is built in, =m is a module, and an is not set line means the code is not there.
lsmod | grep -w gtpPrints a line if that module is loaded right now, and nothing if it is not. One that is not loaded can still be loaded later by anything that needs it.
Show whether Debian builds this, per release
Debian builds this, but not on every flavour. At least one release below builds the code on some of its kernel flavours and not on others, so the answer depends on the architecture and flavour installed.
- bookworm, trixie, forky, sid, bookworm · linux-6.12Mnot built on amd64/cloud-amd64, arm64/cloud-arm64
- M
- a module where it is built at all; some flavours do not build it
- Build switch
- CONFIG_GTP
From the configuration Debian publishes for every kernel flavour it builds. It covers only the architectures Debian ships a linux-config package for, and nothing about a kernel you built yourself. Debian's own status above stays authoritative about the source package.MAINTAINERS kbuild Makefiles Debian linux-config packages
Signals
- Published
- 2026-09-16 (33 days ago)source
- CVSS
- 7.8 high
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:Hsource recompute it - Attack vector
- local (AV:L)source
- EPSS
- 0.16%, higher than 5.2% of all CVEssource
- CISA KEV
- not listedthe KEV catalogue
- Debian urgency
- not yet assignedsource
- Subsystem
- drivers/net
Upstream fixes
The versions the CNA records as introducing and fixing this, and the commit for each. source
| Introduced | Fixed in | Commit |
|---|---|---|
| 4.7 | 5.10.270 | fcafb2b14308 |
| 4.7 | 5.15.221 | 3ca3da5c305c |
| 4.7 | 6.1.188 | 6f815c2fb6ab |
| 4.7 | 6.6.157 | e3b9aa0773ab |
| 4.7 | 6.12.110 | fd8396cfecbd |
| 4.7 | 6.18.52 | 7677eb2cbf2c |
| 4.7 | 7.2.6 | 8d85498016a5 |
| 4.7 | 7.3 | d989e22ae980 |
Debian advisories
| Advisory | Date | Shipped to | Debian |
|---|---|---|---|
| DLA-4841-1 | 2026-10-17 | bookworm 6.1.190-1 | tracker |
| DLA-4817-1 | 2026-10-04 | bookworm 6.12.111-1~deb12u1 | tracker |
| DSA-6528-1 | 2026-09-29 | trixie 6.12.111-1 | tracker |
Why the CNA scored it this way
Quoted from the kernel CNA's own scoring file, word for word. A highlighted metric carries the most severe value CVSS v3.1 defines for it, which is what pushes the score up. source
- AV:LAttack vector, local
- The UAF is triggered from gtp_newlink()'s RTM_NEWLINK error path (ip link add type gtp), a local rtnetlink configuration interface. Concurrent gtp_encap_recv() in softirq only uses already-freed tid_hash/addr_hash; a remote GTP-U peer cannot cause the free.
- AC:LAttack complexity, low
- The attacker controls both sides of the RCU race: one thread issues RTM_NEWLINK that fails after setup_udp_tunnel_sock() (invalid second FD, IPv4/IPv6 family mismatch, or register_netdevice failure) while another floods UDP datagrams at the encap socket so gtp_encap_recv() still holds the gtp_dev pointer across the kfree.
- PR:LPrivileges required, low
- Creating a GTP device requires CAP_NET_ADMIN in the target netns via rtnl_link_get_net_capable()/netlink_ns_capable(). Unprivileged users obtain this through user+network namespaces (unshare -Urn); gtp_link_ops has no extra init-namespace check and MODULE_ALIAS_RTNL_LINK("gtp") permits module autoload.
- UI:NUser interaction, none
- The attacker opens its own UDP sockets, sends packets to them, and issues the failing RTM_NEWLINK from its own process. No separate victim action such as mounting a filesystem or opening a file is required.
- S:UScope, unchanged
- Impact is a host-kernel slab use-after-free in drivers/net/gtp.c, i.e. standard local privilege escalation within the same kernel security authority, not a KVM/Xen guest-to-host escape or IOMMU/DMA boundary bypass.
- C:HConfidentiality impact, high
- gtp0_pdp_find()/gtp1_pdp_find() walk the attacker-sized freed tid_hash hlist under RCU. Heap spraying that slab yields a fake pdp_ctx and an arbitrary kernel read primitive, so Confidentiality is High per UAF guidance.
- I:HIntegrity impact, high
- A sprayed fake pdp_ctx is passed to gtp_rx(), which writes device stats, assigns skb->dev, and calls __netif_rx(); combined with UAF heap reuse this is an arbitrary write and control-flow hijack primitive, so Integrity is High.
- A:HAvailability impact, high
- KASAN reports slab-use-after-free in gtp0_pdp_find from gtp_encap_recv in softirq (udp_queue_rcv_one_skb). The UAF causes a kernel oops or panic even when not fully exploited, so Availability is High.