# CVE-2024-56635: net: avoid potential UAF in default_operstate()

> A race condition in the Linux kernel network subsystem allows a use-after-free, potentially leading to system crashes or arbitrary code execution.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 27 Dec 2024
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-56300, BELL-CVE-2024-56635, DEBIAN-CVE-2024-56635, GHSA-m2h6-g9h7-jxfj, UBUNTU-CVE-2024-56635

## What is CVE-2024-56635?

CVE-2024-56635 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 27 Dec 2024. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

net: avoid potential UAF in default_operstate()

syzbot reported an UAF in default_operstate() [1]

Issue is a race between device and netns dismantles.

After calling __rtnl_unlock() from netdev_run_todo(),
we can not assume the netns of each device is still alive.

Make sure the device is not in NETREG_UNREGISTERED state,
and add an ASSERT_RTNL() before the call to
__dev_get_by_index().

We might move this ASSERT_RTNL() in __dev_get_by_index()
in the future.

[1]

BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in __dev_get_by_index+0x5d/0x110 net/core/dev.c:852
Read of size 8 at addr ffff888043eba1b0 by task syz.0.0/5339

CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 5339 Comm: syz.0.0 Not tainted 6.12.0-syzkaller-10296-gaaf20f870da0 #0
Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), BIOS 1.16.3-debian-1.16.3-2~bpo12+1 04/01/2014
Call Trace:
 <TASK>
  __dump_stack lib/dump_stack.c:94 [inline]
  dump_stack_lvl+0x241/0x360 lib/dump_stack.c:120
  print_address_description mm/kasan/report.c:378 [inline]
  print_report+0x169/0x550 mm/kasan/report.c:489
  kasan_report+0x143/0x180 mm/kasan/report.c:602
  __dev_get_by_index+0x5d/0x110 net/core/dev.c:852
  default_operstate net/core/link_watch.c:51 [inline]
  rfc2863_policy+0x224/0x300 net/core/link_watch.c:67
  linkwatch_do_dev+0x3e/0x170 net/core/link_watch.c:170
  netdev_run_todo+0x461/0x1000 net/core/dev.c:10894
  rtnl_unlock net/core/rtnetlink.c:152 [inline]
  rtnl_net_unlock include/linux/rtnetlink.h:133 [inline]
  rtnl_dellink+0x760/0x8d0 net/core/rtnetlink.c:3520
  rtnetlink_rcv_msg+0x791/0xcf0 net/core/rtnetlink.c:6911
  netlink_rcv_skb+0x1e3/0x430 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:2541
  netlink_unicast_kernel net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1321 [inline]
  netlink_unicast+0x7f6/0x990 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1347
  netlink_sendmsg+0x8e4/0xcb0 net/netlink/af_netlink.c:1891
  sock_sendmsg_nosec net/socket.c:711 [inline]
  __sock_sendmsg+0x221/0x270 net/socket.c:726
  ____sys_sendmsg+0x52a/0x7e0 net/socket.c:2583
  ___sys_sendmsg net/socket.c:2637 [inline]
  __sys_sendmsg+0x269/0x350 net/socket.c:2669
  do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:52 [inline]
  do_syscall_64+0xf3/0x230 arch/x86/entry/common.c:83
 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f
RIP: 0033:0x7f2a3cb80809
Code: ff ff c3 66 2e 0f 1f 84 00 00 00 00 00 0f 1f 40 00 48 89 f8 48 89 f7 48 89 d6 48 89 ca 4d 89 c2 4d 89 c8 4c 8b 4c 24 08 0f 05 <48> 3d 01 f0 ff ff 73 01 c3 48 c7 c1 a8 ff ff ff f7 d8 64 89 01 48
RSP: 002b:00007f2a3d9cd058 EFLAGS: 00000246 ORIG_RAX: 000000000000002e
RAX: ffffffffffffffda RBX: 00007f2a3cd45fa0 RCX: 00007f2a3cb80809
RDX: 0000000000000000 RSI: 0000000020000000 RDI: 0000000000000008
RBP: 00007f2a3cbf393e R08: 0000000000000000 R09: 0000000000000000
R10: 0000000000000000 R11: 0000000000000246 R12: 0000000000000000
R13: 0000000000000000 R14: 00007f2a3cd45fa0 R15: 00007ffd03bc65c8
 </TASK>

Allocated by task 5339:
  kasan_save_stack mm/kasan/common.c:47 [inline]
  kasan_save_track+0x3f/0x80 mm/kasan/common.c:68
  poison_kmalloc_redzone mm/kasan/common.c:377 [inline]
  __kasan_kmalloc+0x98/0xb0 mm/kasan/common.c:394
  kasan_kmalloc include/linux/kasan.h:260 [inline]
  __kmalloc_cache_noprof+0x243/0x390 mm/slub.c:4314
  kmalloc_noprof include/linux/slab.h:901 [inline]
  kmalloc_array_noprof include/linux/slab.h:945 [inline]
  netdev_create_hash net/core/dev.c:11870 [inline]
  netdev_init+0x10c/0x250 net/core/dev.c:11890
  ops_init+0x31e/0x590 net/core/net_namespace.c:138
  setup_net+0x287/0x9e0 net/core/net_namespace.c:362
  copy_net_ns+0x33f/0x570 net/core/net_namespace.c:500
  create_new_namespaces+0x425/0x7b0 kernel/nsproxy.c:110
  unshare_nsproxy_namespaces+0x124/0x180 kernel/nsproxy.c:228
  ksys_unshare+0x57d/0xa70 kernel/fork.c:3314
  __do_sys_unshare kernel/fork.c:3385 [inline]
  __se_sys_unshare kernel/fork.c:3383 [inline]
  __x64_sys_unshare+0x38/0x40 kernel/fork.c:3383
  do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:52 [inline]
  do_syscall_64+0xf3/0x230 arch/x8
---truncated---

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

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2024-56635?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2024-56635?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2024-56635 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2024-56635 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-2024-56635 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2024-56635 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 27 Dec 2024. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2024-56635 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-2024-56635/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-56635/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2024-56635
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-56635
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2024-56635

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-56635/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.