CVE-2026-74561
Use-after-free in Linux nexthop code enabling kernel crash or local privilege escalation.
Is CVE-2026-74561 being exploited?
Not confirmed. CVE-2026-74561 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 0.11% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
How severe is CVE-2026-74561?
CVE-2026-74561 is rated High with a CVSS score of 8.8. 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-2026-74561?
Yes. A fix has been recorded for CVE-2026-74561. The vendor advisory is the authority on the exact fixed version — apply it from there rather than from a summary.
What does CVE-2026-74561 affect?
CVE-2026-74561 affects Linux kernel (net/ipv4 nexthop), Linux-based routers and network appliances, Containers/VMs sharing host kernel. Confirm the exact affected versions against the vendor advisory before deciding you are exposed.
What should I do about CVE-2026-74561?
Apply kernel security updates, reboot affected hosts, and restrict CAP_NET_ADMIN access.
Exploitation status reflects CISA's KEV catalog as we last synced it. Check the catalog directly.
Local or privileged actor can send crafted rtnetlink nexthop replace to trigger kernel use-after-free, causing DoS or possible local privilege escalation.
Patch when possible
- affected>= 081efd18326e353c6fbfdeff903a83edde953f72 and < 44f53e4331a30fabc38a411fae7524341b618db3
- affected>= 081efd18326e353c6fbfdeff903a83edde953f72 and < 4787a6d2629b4e8c0b6bacab1f75c1660eca44d9
- affected6.16
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.