CVE-2026-98230: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: xfrm: use hlist_del_init_rcu for state_cache and state_cache

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: xfrm: use hlist_del_init_rcu for state_cache and state_cache_input Commit 14acf9652e56 ("x

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: xfrm: use hlist_del_init_rcu for state_cache and state_cache_input Commit 14acf9652e56 ("xfrm: defensively unhash xfrm_state lists in __xfrm_state_delete") converted bydst/bysrc/byseq/byspi from hlist_del_rcu() to hlist_del_init_rcu() so that a second __xfrm_state_delete() on the same object becomes a no-op rather than a write through LIST_POISON pprev. It missed state_cache and state_cache_input, which kept hlist_del_rcu(): - hlist_del_rcu() leaves pprev = LIST_POISON2 (non-NULL), so hlist_unhashed() returns false. - hlist_del_init_rcu() leaves pprev = NULL, so hlist_unhashed() returns true. A second __xfrm_state_delete() therefore enters __hlist_del() on the already-deleted state_cache/state_cache_input nodes and does WRITE_ONCE(*pprev, next) through LIST_POISON2 — a write use-after-free once the slab is reused. The corruption can in turn cause a subsequent hlist_for_each_entry_rcu traversal to follow a dangling next pointer, producing the read use-after-free reported in xfrm_input_state_lookup(). Switch state_cache and state_cache_input to hlist_del_init_rcu() to match the other four lists, closing the

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 1% 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

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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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