CVE-2026-72383: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sctp: fix addr_wq_timer race in sctp_free_addr_wq() sctp_free_addr

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sctp: fix addr_wq_timer race in sctp_free_addr_wq() sctp_free_addr_wq() previously removed

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sctp: fix addr_wq_timer race in sctp_free_addr_wq() sctp_free_addr_wq() previously removed addr_wq_timer using timer_delete() while holding addr_wq_lock. However, timer_delete() does not guarantee that a currently running timer handler has completed. This allows a race with sctp_addr_wq_timeout_handler(), where the handler may still run after addr_waitq has been freed, acquire addr_wq_lock, and access freed memory, leading to a use-after-free. Fix this by calling timer_shutdown_sync() before taking addr_wq_lock. This guarantees that any in-flight timer handler has finished and prevents the timer from being re-armed during teardown, making subsequent cleanup safe.

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 0.16%, higher than 5% of CVEs. That’s low, but low isn’t zero, and the odds jump the day someone publishes an exploit. Scored November 1, 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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