VulnerabilityPublished 23 Jan 2026Updated 5 Nov 2026

CVE-2026-22994: Linux kernel · bpf: Fix reference count leak in bpf_prog_test_run_xdp()

Affects Linux kernelSource CVE Database V5

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Not known to be exploited · fixed in fb9ef40cccdbacce36029b305d0ef1e12e4fea38 : update Linux kernel when convenient.

Data as of 5 Nov 2026, 21:49 UTC

Severity

Unrated

Rated by Threat Radar · No CVSS score from NVD or the CNA

Thin evidence

One scorer or none

Exploitation: No evidence of active exploitation and no public proof of concept
Automatable: Attackers cannot reliably automate steps 1–4 of the kill chain
Technical impact: Limited control over the software or limited information exposure

CISA SSVC assessment, 2026-11-05.

Patch

Available – fixed in fb9ef40cccdbacce36029b305d0ef1e12e4fea38, ec69daabe45256f98ac86c651b8ad1b2574489a7, 368569bc546d3368ee9980ba79fc42fdff9a3365 +2

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 23 Jan 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 5 Nov 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Upgrade to a fixed release listed under Affected software.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 1c194998252469cad00a08bd9ef0b99fd255c260, < fb9ef40cccdbacce36029b305d0ef1e12e4fea38	Fixed in fb9ef40cccdbacce36029b305d0ef1e12e4fea38
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 1c194998252469cad00a08bd9ef0b99fd255c260, < ec69daabe45256f98ac86c651b8ad1b2574489a7	Fixed in ec69daabe45256f98ac86c651b8ad1b2574489a7
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 1c194998252469cad00a08bd9ef0b99fd255c260, < 368569bc546d3368ee9980ba79fc42fdff9a3365	Fixed in 368569bc546d3368ee9980ba79fc42fdff9a3365
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 1c194998252469cad00a08bd9ef0b99fd255c260, < 98676ee71fd4eafeb8be63c7f3f1905d40e03101	Fixed in 98676ee71fd4eafeb8be63c7f3f1905d40e03101
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 1c194998252469cad00a08bd9ef0b99fd255c260, < 737be05a765761d7d7c9f7fe92274bd8e6f6951e	Fixed in 737be05a765761d7d7c9f7fe92274bd8e6f6951e
LinuxLinux	Affected =5.18	Fixed in–

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: bpf: Fix reference count leak in bpf_prog_test_run_xdp() syzbot is reporting unregister_netdevice: waiting for sit0 to become free. Usage count = 2 problem. A debug printk() patch found that a refcount is obtained at xdp_convert_md_to_buff() from bpf_prog_test_run_xdp(). According to commit ec94670fcb3b ("bpf: Support specifying ingress via xdp_md context in BPF_PROG_TEST_RUN"), the refcount obtained by xdp_convert_md_to_buff() will be released by xdp_convert_buff_to_md(). Therefore, we can consider that the error handling path introduced by commit 1c1949982524 ("bpf: introduce frags support to bpf_prog_test_run_xdp()") forgot to call xdp_convert_buff_to_md().

References

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