CVE-2026-43451: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfilter: nfnetlink_queue: fix entry leak in bridge verdict error path nfqnl_recv

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfilter: nfnetlink_queue: fix entry leak in bridge verdict error path nfqnl_recv_verdict

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfilter: nfnetlink_queue: fix entry leak in bridge verdict error path nfqnl_recv_verdict() calls find_dequeue_entry() to remove the queue entry from the queue data structures, taking ownership of the entry. For PF_BRIDGE packets, it then calls nfqa_parse_bridge() to parse VLAN attributes. If nfqa_parse_bridge() returns an error (e.g. NFQA_VLAN present but NFQA_VLAN_TCI missing), the function returns immediately without freeing the dequeued entry or its sk_buff. This leaks the nf_queue_entry, its associated sk_buff, and all held references (net_device refcounts, struct net refcount). Repeated triggering exhausts kernel memory. Fix this by dropping the entry via nfqnl_reinject() with NF_DROP verdict on the error path, consistent with other error handling in this file.

Description from the National Vulnerability Database, published by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

What it means for a small business

Linux is on the computers, phones or browsers your team uses every day. Turn on automatic updates and restart: most of these fixes only take effect after a restart.

How likely is an attack? The Exploit Prediction Scoring System, run by FIRST (the global association of security response teams), puts the odds of this one being exploited in the next 30 days at 0.12%, higher than 2% of CVEs. That’s low, but low isn’t zero, and the odds jump the day someone publishes an exploit. Scored October 29, 2026, updated daily.

Check your own setup

Website check: reads what your site runs from the outside (WordPress version, plugins it can see, old server software) and matches it against this database.
Server check: what your web server says about itself, and whether that version has known flaws.

Sources

Part of the Huttenlocher Technologies vulnerability database, refreshed twice a day from CISA and the NVD. The title, category and plain-language guidance are ours; check the linked record before acting on a detail. This is general guidance, not a review of your systems.

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