Linux kernel is core infrastructure; a 9.8 kernel vuln enabling memory corruption/ESC/DoS affects many organizations and requires org-wide attention.
CVE-2026-74436
Use-after-free in Linux rxrpc accept preallocation causing kernel memory corruption.
Is CVE-2026-74436 being exploited?
Not confirmed. CVE-2026-74436 does not appear in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which records only exploitation that has been observed and reported publicly. That is evidence of absence of a report, not evidence the flaw is unattacked. EPSS currently estimates a 0.40% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
How severe is CVE-2026-74436?
CVE-2026-74436 is rated Critical with a CVSS score of 9.8. Severity describes how bad exploitation would be, not how likely it is: pair it with exploitation evidence before deciding what to patch first.
Is there a patch for CVE-2026-74436?
Yes. A fix has been recorded for CVE-2026-74436. The vendor advisory is the authority on the exact fixed version — apply it from there rather than from a summary.
What does CVE-2026-74436 affect?
CVE-2026-74436 affects Linux kernel (rxrpc subsystem). Confirm the exact affected versions against the vendor advisory before deciding you are exposed.
What should I do about CVE-2026-74436?
Install vendor/kernel security updates and reboot; disable rxrpc if impossible to patch quickly.
Exploitation status reflects CISA's KEV catalog as we last synced it. Check the catalog directly.
Use-after-free in rxrpc accept preallocation allows kernel memory corruption, causing crashes or local privilege escalation.
Immediate action required
- affected>= 00e907127e6f86d0f9b122d9b4347a8aa09a8b61 and < d6207326b4ca0ae1041281b6af9df53f8080669a
- affected>= 00e907127e6f86d0f9b122d9b4347a8aa09a8b61 and < 11b429b84c87cb5a0152f14e7d6cb649ed363901
- affected>= 00e907127e6f86d0f9b122d9b4347a8aa09a8b61 and < c20d983968f239574290cf804a58cde18ad1c559
- affected>= 00e907127e6f86d0f9b122d9b4347a8aa09a8b61 and < 0337cdba0c477f176c0459bed012109453184573
- affected>= 00e907127e6f86d0f9b122d9b4347a8aa09a8b61 and < dfa0b2bbc5e50119f89c6b5407faa5ed86dfa7c5
- affected>= 00e907127e6f86d0f9b122d9b4347a8aa09a8b61 and < 35a967ff8b24db09ee429c39c5b5e6571639997d
- affected>= 00e907127e6f86d0f9b122d9b4347a8aa09a8b61 and < 1741378a7a83dfd8e53a9196730df709b903cd33
- affected>= 00e907127e6f86d0f9b122d9b4347a8aa09a8b61 and < dc175389b18c29a5303ee83169ec653adfae3e17
- affected4.9
As published in the CVE Program record. A version outside these ranges is not a statement that it is unaffected — vendors sometimes understate a range, and distribution-backported builds carry upstream numbers that do not reflect what was patched into them.