VulnerabilityPublished 23 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-99043: Linux kernel · ice: fix metadata_dst refcount handling on representor teardown

Source GCVE Database

Authoritative record:CVE-2026-99043· High

Not known to be exploited · fixed in beb05f484a1e4a5a66e3678e4b7f3147f651c080 : patch Linux kernel soon.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 13:47 UTC

Severity

High

Rated by Threat Radar · CVSS not yet scored by NVD

EPSS: 0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 7% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in beb05f484a1e4a5a66e3678e4b7f3147f651c080, 58858b8f14803a7eeac297b3ce20f3b21bf2ff66, 6f5544f53f1e58ea8a49fb9f9158d5793b9205b0 +2

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 23 Oct 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: 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 26 Oct 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.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, 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.

ghsa-45qx-wx52-595w

What to do

Upgrade to a fixed release listed under Affected software.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ f5396b8a663f7a78ee5b75a47ee524b40795b265, < beb05f484a1e4a5a66e3678e4b7f3147f651c080	Fixed in beb05f484a1e4a5a66e3678e4b7f3147f651c080
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ f5396b8a663f7a78ee5b75a47ee524b40795b265, < 58858b8f14803a7eeac297b3ce20f3b21bf2ff66	Fixed in 58858b8f14803a7eeac297b3ce20f3b21bf2ff66
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ f5396b8a663f7a78ee5b75a47ee524b40795b265, < 6f5544f53f1e58ea8a49fb9f9158d5793b9205b0	Fixed in 6f5544f53f1e58ea8a49fb9f9158d5793b9205b0
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ f5396b8a663f7a78ee5b75a47ee524b40795b265, < 5e4d20db5179e83a4948927bc39e489a9a83256d	Fixed in 5e4d20db5179e83a4948927bc39e489a9a83256d
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ f5396b8a663f7a78ee5b75a47ee524b40795b265, < 1f263235651775f93c15d90c9f25c3f4a4ef6512	Fixed in 1f263235651775f93c15d90c9f25c3f4a4ef6512
LinuxLinux	Affected =5.16	Fixed in–

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ice: fix metadata_dst refcount handling on representor teardown ice_eswitch_release_repr() uses metadata_dst_free() to release the representor's metadata_dst. metadata_dst_free() directly frees the underlying memory without checking the dst_entry refcount. When ice_eswitch_port_start_xmit() processes a packet, it takes a reference via dst_hold() and attaches the metadata_dst to the skb. If the representor is torn down while packets are still queued on the lower device (e.g. in a qdisc), the metadata_dst is freed while references are still held. Use dst_release() instead, which correctly decrements the refcount and only frees the object when all references are dropped. The dst subsystem already handles metadata_dst cleanup in dst_destroy() when DST_METADATA is set. Other drivers sharing this pattern (nfp, airoha, bnxt) already use dst_release() for their metadata_dst lifecycle.

References

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