Linux Kernel up to 6.12.108/6.18.49/7.2.3 qede qede_fill_frag_skb null pointer dereference

CVSS Meta Temp Score
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CTI Interest Score
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7.2$0-$5k0.00+

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability, which was classified as critical, was found in Linux Kernel up to 6.12.108/6.18.49/7.2.3. Affected by this vulnerability is the function qede_fill_frag_skb of the component qede. Such manipulation leads to null pointer dereference. This vulnerability is listed as CVE-2026-89511. The attack may be performed from remote. There is no available exploit. You should upgrade the affected component.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 6.12.108/6.18.49/7.2.3 and classified as critical. Affected by this issue is the function qede_fill_frag_skb of the component qede. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a null pointer dereference vulnerability. Using CWE to declare the problem leads to CWE-476. A NULL pointer dereference occurs when the application dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid, but is NULL, typically causing a crash or exit. Impacted is availability. CVE summarizes:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: qede: Fix NULL pointer dereference in TPA fragment processing Under memory pressure, the qede driver encounters NULL pointer dereferences when processing TPA continuation fragments. Commit 8a8633978b84 ("qede: Add build_skb() support.") accidentally dropped the assignment of tpa_info->buffer.data in qede_tpa_start(). When memory pressure causes an SKB allocation failure in qede_tpa_start(), the driver sets tpa_start_fail = true and attempts to recycle the physical page later in qede_tpa_end() via qede_reuse_page(). However, because buffer.data was left uninitialized (NULL), qede_reuse_page() pushes a "ghost" BD (valid DMA mapping but NULL data pointer) back into the active Rx ring. The next time the hardware uses this ring slot, it passes a NULL page to qede_fill_frag_skb(), causing a kernel panic. Example crash from production system: BUG: unable to handle kernel NULL pointer dereference at 0x8 RIP: qede_fill_frag_skb+0x96/0x430 [qede] Call Trace: qede_rx_int+0xb06/0x1de0 qede_poll+0x2f4/0x6c0 __napi_poll+0x2d/0x130 Fix the root cause by restoring the tpa_info->buffer.data assignment in qede_tpa_start(), ensuring valid pages are correctly tracked and recycled. Additionally, update the stale comment for struct qede_agg_info::buffer to reflect its current usage.

The advisory is shared for download at git.kernel.org. This vulnerability is handled as CVE-2026-89511 since 09/11/2026. The exploitation is known to be easy. The attack may be launched remotely. No form of authentication is required for exploitation. There are known technical details, but no exploit is available. The current price for an exploit might be approx. USD $0-$5k (estimation calculated on 09/12/2026).

Upgrading to version 6.12.109, 6.18.50, 7.2.4 or 7.3-rc1 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch 7f911e208b3ca2c76d9f2bbba1f54b9403568c10/2a952fb1b20d83e83ca852773e6188511f7d2191/f5c8619ccbd70102642120c4c6fda1c048a555fd/06aa3d26327f24edd039ff249672fdf6f2ba5695 is able to eliminate this problem. The best possible mitigation is suggested to be upgrading to the latest version.

Once again VulDB remains the best source for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

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CPE 2.3info

CPE 2.2info

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 7.5
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 7.2

VulDB Base Score: 7.5
VulDB Temp Score: 7.2
VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv2info

AVACAuCIA
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VectorComplexityAuthenticationConfidentialityIntegrityAvailability
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VulDB Base Score: 🔒
VulDB Temp Score: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Null pointer dereference
CWE: CWE-476 / CWE-404
CAPEC: 🔒
ATT&CK: 🔒

Physical: No
Local: No
Remote: Yes

Availability: 🔒
Status: Not defined
Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔒

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Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Upgrade
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔒

Upgrade: Kernel 6.12.109/6.18.50/7.2.4/7.3-rc1
Patch: 7f911e208b3ca2c76d9f2bbba1f54b9403568c10/2a952fb1b20d83e83ca852773e6188511f7d2191/f5c8619ccbd70102642120c4c6fda1c048a555fd/06aa3d26327f24edd039ff249672fdf6f2ba5695

Timelineinfo

09/11/2026 CVE reserved
09/11/2026 +0 days VulDB entry created
09/12/2026 +0 days Advisory disclosed
09/12/2026 +0 days VulDB entry last update

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: kernel.org

Advisory: git.kernel.org
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2026-89511 (🔒)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2026-89511
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-402908

Entryinfo

Created: 09/12/2026 01:42
Changes: 09/12/2026 01:42 (59)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

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