Linux Kernel Vulnerability in XSK Memory Management by Vendor Linux

CVE-2026-74559

What is CVE-2026-74559?

A memory management vulnerability is present in the Linux kernel related to the XSK (eXpress Data Path Socket). This issue arises due to improper handling of fragmented packets when they exceed the maximum number of descriptors allowed, potentially leading to data loss. Specifically, the logic for draining continuation descriptors was not correctly implemented, causing them to be discarded and inaccessible. The vulnerability has been mitigated by introducing a new flag, xdp_sock::drain_cont, which enables the continued consumption of descriptors from the AF_XDP transmit ring. This ensures that descriptors which would previously have been lost can now be properly managed, reducing the risk of packet loss during transmission.

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