# CVE-2026-45917: ipvs: do not keep dest_dst if dev is going down

> A race condition in the Linux kernel IPVS module can leak device references when a network interface goes down, potentially leading to resource exhaustion.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 May 2026
- **Updated:** 21 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-88641, BELL-CVE-2026-45917, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-45917, GHSA-rhv7-mr5p-cgr8, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-11-CVE-2026-45917, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-12-CVE-2026-45917, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2204-CVE-2026-45917, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2026-45917, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-45917

## What is CVE-2026-45917?

CVE-2026-45917 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 27 May 2026. 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:

ipvs: do not keep dest_dst if dev is going down

There is race between the netdev notifier ip_vs_dst_event()
and the code that caches dst with dev that is going down.
As the FIB can be notified for the closed device after our
handler finishes, it is possible valid route to be returned
and cached resuling in a leaked dev reference until the dest
is not removed.

To prevent new dest_dst to be attached to dest just after the
handler dropped the old one, add a netif_running() check
to make sure the notifier handler is not currently running
for device that is closing.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-45917?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2026-45917?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-45917 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-45917 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-2026-45917 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-45917 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 27 May 2026. 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-2026-45917 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-2026-45917/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-45917/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-45917
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-45917
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-45917

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-45917/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.