CVE-2026-43026

NameCVE-2026-43026
DescriptionIn the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfilter: ctnetlink: zero expect NAT fields when CTA_EXPECT_NAT absent ctnetlink_alloc_expect() allocates expectations from a non-zeroing slab cache via nf_ct_expect_alloc(). When CTA_EXPECT_NAT is not present in the netlink message, saved_addr and saved_proto are never initialized. Stale data from a previous slab occupant can then be dumped to userspace by ctnetlink_exp_dump_expect(), which checks these fields to decide whether to emit CTA_EXPECT_NAT. The safe sibling nf_ct_expect_init(), used by the packet path, explicitly zeroes these fields. Zero saved_addr, saved_proto and dir in the else branch, guarded by IS_ENABLED(CONFIG_NF_NAT) since these fields only exist when NAT is enabled. Confirmed by priming the expect slab with NAT-bearing expectations, freeing them, creating a new expectation without CTA_EXPECT_NAT, and observing that the ctnetlink dump emits a spurious CTA_EXPECT_NAT containing stale data from the prior allocation.
SourceCVE (at NVD; CERT, ENISA, LWN, oss-sec, fulldisc, Debian ELTS, Red Hat, Ubuntu, Gentoo, SUSE bugzilla/CVE, GitHub advisories/code/issues, web search, more)
ReferencesDLA-4561-1, DSA-6243-1

Vulnerable and fixed packages

The table below lists information on source packages.

Source PackageReleaseVersionStatus
linux (PTS)bullseye5.10.223-1vulnerable
bullseye (security)5.10.251-5vulnerable
bookworm6.1.170-3fixed
bookworm (security)6.1.172-1fixed
trixie6.12.86-1fixed
trixie (security)6.12.88-1fixed
forky, sid7.0.7-1fixed
linux-6.1 (PTS)bullseye (security)6.1.172-1~deb11u1fixed

The information below is based on the following data on fixed versions.

PackageTypeReleaseFixed VersionUrgencyOriginDebian Bugs
linuxsourcebookworm6.1.170-1DSA-6243-1
linuxsourcetrixie6.12.85-1
linuxsource(unstable)6.19.12-1
linux-6.1sourcebullseye6.1.170-1~deb11u1DLA-4561-1

Notes

https://git.kernel.org/linus/35177c6877134a21315f37d57a5577846225623e (7.0-rc7)

Search for package or bug name: Reporting problems