Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
l2tp: use refcount_inc_not_zero in l2tp_session_get_by_ifname
A reader in l2tp_session_get_by_ifname() can return a pointer to a
session whose refcount has reached zero. The getter takes its
reference with plain refcount_inc(), but every other session getter
in the same file (l2tp_v2_session_get, l2tp_v3_session_get, and the
corresponding _get_next variants) uses refcount_inc_not_zero()
because the IDR/RCU lookup can race with refcount_dec_and_test() ->
l2tp_session_free() -> kfree_rcu(). The ifname getter is the only
outlier; the inconsistency was raised on-list after 979c017803c4
("l2tp: use list_del_rcu in l2tp_session_unhash").
A reader inside rcu_read_lock_bh() that matches session->ifname can
be preempted between the strcmp() and the refcount_inc(). If the
last reference drops on another CPU in that window, the reader's
refcount_inc() runs on a counter that has reached zero. refcount_t
catches the addition-on-zero, prints "refcount_t: addition on 0;
use-after-free", saturates the counter, and returns the saturated
pointer to the caller. Session memory is held live by the in-flight
RCU read section, but the kfree_rcu() callback queued from
l2tp_session_free() will free it once the grace period closes; a
caller that dereferences the returned session past that point hits
a slab-use-after-free. On PREEMPT_RT local_bh_disable() is a per-CPU
sleeping lock and the preemption window is real; on stock PREEMPT
kernels local_bh_disable() is a preempt_count increment that closes
the cross-CPU race in practice (see below).
Use refcount_inc_not_zero() and continue the list walk on failure,
matching the other session getters in the file. The ifname getter
is the only session getter in net/l2tp/ that still uses the bare
refcount_inc() pattern; this change restores file-internal
consistency. The success path is unchanged.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | 6.12 | 6.12.93 |
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | linux | 7.0.12-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | linux | 6.12.94-1 | — |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | linux | 7.0.0-28.28 | — |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | linux-aws +2 | 7.0.0-1009.9 | USN-8618-1, USN-8603-1 |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | linux-gcp +1 | 7.0.0-1008.8 | USN-8593-1 |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | linux-gke | 7.0.0-1003.4 | — |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | linux-ibm +1 | 7.0.0-1010.10 | USN-8603-1, USN-8593-1 |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | linux-nvidia | 7.0.0-1016.16 | USN-8663-1 |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | linux-nvidia-bos | 7.0.0-2016.16 | USN-8664-1 |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | linux-raspi | 7.0.0-1015.15 | USN-8618-1 |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | linux-riscv +1 | 7.0.0-28.28.1 | — |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | linux-azure-7.0 | 7.0.0-1014.14~24.04.1 | USN-8728-2 |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | linux-azure-fde-7.0 | 7.0.0-1013.13~24.04.1 | — |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | linux-gcp-7.0 +1 | 7.0.0-1011.11~24.04.1 | USN-8728-3, USN-8728-1 |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | linux-hwe-7.0 | 7.0.0-28.28~24.04.1 | — |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | linux-nvidia-7.0 | 7.0.0-1016.16~24.04.1 | USN-8663-1 |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | linux-riscv +26 | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | linux-riscv-7.0 | 7.0.0-28.28.1~24.04.3 | — |
| Ubuntu 22.04 LTS | linux-riscv +32 | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 20.04 LTS | linux-gke +28 | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 18.04 LTS | linux-gcp +14 | No fix yet | — |
Show 2 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | linux-hwe-edge | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu Pro Realtime 24.04 LTS | linux-realtime-6.14 +1 | No fix yet | — |
Red Hat
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 10 | rv +77 | 6.12.0-211.63.1.el10_2 | RHSA-2026:76738 |
Show 1 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Shadow Migration Toolkit 10 | kernel-modules-internal | 6.12.0-211.63.1.el10_2 | RHSA-2026:76738 |
AlmaLinux
Errata ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| AlmaLinux 10 | rv +74 | 6.12.0-211.63.1.el10_2 | ALSA-2026:76738 |
SUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES for SAP 16.0 | kernel-64kb +8 | 6.12.0-160000.38.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:23902-1 |
| SLES for SAP 16.0 | kernel-default-base | 6.12.0-160000.38.1.160000.2.23 | SUSE-SU-2026:23902-1 |
| SLES 16.0 | kernel-64kb +8 | 6.12.0-160000.38.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:23902-1, SUSE-SU-2026:23897-1 |
| SLES 16.0 | kernel-default-base | 6.12.0-160000.38.1.160000.2.23 | SUSE-SU-2026:23902-1 |
| SLE Micro 6.2 | kernel-default-base | 6.12.0-160000.38.1.160000.2.23 | SUSE-SU-2026:23887-1 |
| SLE Micro 6.2 | kernel-rt +5 | 6.12.0-160000.38.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:23887-1, SUSE-SU-2026:23881-1 |
openSUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| openSUSE Leap 16.0 | kernel-default-base | 6.12.0-160000.38.1.160000.2.22 | openSUSE-SU-2026:21910-1 |
| openSUSE Leap 16.0 | kernel-rt +11 | 6.12.0-160000.38.1 | openSUSE-SU-2026:21910-1 |
Oracle Linux
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oracle Linux 10 | rv +29 | 6.12.0-211.63.1.el10_2 | ELSA-2026-76738 |
| Oracle Linux 9 | kernel-uek +34 | 6.12.0-206.104.3.3.el10uek | ELSA-2026-500248 |
Advisories 18
- USN-8593-1 linux-ibm, linux-oracle vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Nov 13, 2026
- USN-8663-1 linux-nvidia, linux-nvidia-7.0 vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Nov 13, 2026
- USN-8728-1 linux-gcp-7.0 vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Nov 13, 2026
- USN-8618-1 linux-aws, linux-raspi vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Nov 13, 2026
- USN-8728-3 linux-oracle-7.0 vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Nov 13, 2026
- USN-8728-2 linux-azure-7.0 vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Nov 13, 2026
- USN-8603-1 linux-azure, linux-azure-fde vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Nov 13, 2026
- USN-8664-1 linux-nvidia-bos vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Nov 13, 2026
- RHSA-2026:76738 Red Hat Security Advisory: kernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Nov 13, 2026
- WID-SEC-2026-2403 Linux Kernel: Mehrere Schwachstellen ermöglichen nicht spezifizierten Angriff BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Nov 12, 2026
- ALSA-2026:76738 Important: kernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update AlmaLinux Security Advisories · Oct 29, 2026
- ELSA-2026-76738 Important: kernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update (Oracle Linux 10) Oracle Linux Security Advisories (ELSA) · Oct 8, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2026:23902-1 Security update for the Linux Kernel SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Sep 30, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2026:23881-1 Security update for the Linux Kernel SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Sep 30, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2026:23887-1 Security update for the Linux Kernel SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Sep 30, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2026:23897-1 Security update for the Linux Kernel SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Sep 30, 2026
- openSUSE-SU-2026:21910-1 Security update for the Linux Kernel SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Sep 25, 2026
- ELSA-2026-500248 Important: Unbreakable Enterprise kernel security update (Oracle Linux 9) Oracle Linux Security Advisories (ELSA) · Sep 4, 2026