HIGH Introduced in 6.2
nfp IpsecRx UAF
CVE-2026-98561
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
01Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: nfp: hold IPsec RX state under the XArray lock nfp_net_ipsec_rx() drops the XArray lock before taking a reference to the xfrm_state it found. The delete path can erase the entry and drop the last state reference in that interval. RX can then try to increment a zero refcount after the state has been queued for destruction. The driver queues firmware invalidation asynchronously; the delete path does not wait for the command to complete or drain pending RX processing. The XFRM garbage collector waits for an RCU grace period before freeing the state. That delays reclamation but does not make acquiring a reference from zero valid. Take the xfrm_state reference before releasing the XArray lock so xa_erase() cannot run between lookup and reference acquisition.
02KernelScan AI Analysis
Risk summary
A race condition in the Netronome NFP driver's IPsec receive path allows a remote attacker to trigger a use-after-free by sending IPsec packets while a security association is being deleted. This can lead to kernel memory corruption, enabling privilege escalation or denial of service on devices with IPsec offload enabled.
Vulnerability analysis
The NFP driver's IPsec receive function looked up an xfrm_state from an XArray, released the lock, and only then attempted to take a reference on the state. In the window between unlock and reference acquisition, a concurrent delete path could erase the XArray entry and drop the last reference, queuing the state for destruction. When the receive path then incremented the now-zero refcount, it operated on a freed object. The fix moves the reference acquisition inside the locked section so the lookup and hold are atomic, preventing the delete path from intervening. The bug is reachable by any network peer that can send IPsec traffic to an NFP interface with active IPsec offload — typically a VPN gateway or firewall — and requires no local privileges or user interaction.
Lifecycle
03Fix Versions
| Branch | Introduced | Fixed in | Patch commit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.12 | 6.2 | 6.12.112 | dd765023bb54 |
| 6.18 | 6.2 | 6.18.55 | 8468d05aa08d |
| 6.6 | 6.2 | 6.6.158 | c1b1639fb138 |
| 7.2 | 6.2 | 7.2.9 | fe6c8ea8bfd5 |
| mainline | 6.2 | 7.3 | 1a983a4e14c6 |
| cip/6.12 | 6.2 | 6.12.112-cip33 | dd765023bb54 |
04CIP Kernels
State of the newest release of each Civil Infrastructure Platform SLTS tree, from CIP's own fix records.
| CIP tree | State |
|---|---|
| cip/6.12 | Fixed in 6.12.112-cip33 |