# CVE-2020-14416: Use after free in n/a

> A race condition in the Linux kernel's slip and slcan line disciplines allows attackers to trigger a use-after-free, potentially leading to code execution or privilege escalation.

- **Severity:** Medium 4.2 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 18 Jun 2020
- **Updated:** 8 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2020-14416, GHSA-whm7-h297-5ccm, UBUNTU-CVE-2020-14416

## What is CVE-2020-14416?

CVE-2020-14416 is a medium-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 18 Jun 2020. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

In the Linux kernel before 5.4.16, a race condition in tty->disc_data handling in the slip and slcan line discipline could lead to a use-after-free, aka CID-0ace17d56824. This affects drivers/net/slip/slip.c and drivers/net/can/slcan.c.

Weakness: CWE-416 (Use After Free), CWE-362 (Concurrent Execution using Shared Resource with Improper Synchronization)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-14416?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Linux kernel, Opensuse Leap.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-14416?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2020-14416 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-14416 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-14416 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-14416 is a medium-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 18 Jun 2020. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-14416 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux kernel. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-14416/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-14416/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-14416
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-14416
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-14416

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-14416/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.