# CVE-2026-53184: udp: clear skb->dev before running a sockmap verdict

> A null pointer dereference in the Linux kernel UDP receive path causes a general protection fault and system crash when a sockmap verdict program performs a socket lookup.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 25 Jun 2026
- **Updated:** 19 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-90942, BELL-CVE-2026-53184, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-53184, GHSA-w59p-46mp-6wpv, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-12-CVE-2026-53184, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2026-53184, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-53184

## What is CVE-2026-53184?

CVE-2026-53184 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 25 Jun 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

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

udp: clear skb->dev before running a sockmap verdict

On the UDP receive path skb->dev is repurposed as dev_scratch (the
truesize/state cache set by udp_set_dev_scratch()), through the
union { struct net_device *dev; unsigned long dev_scratch; } in sk_buff.

When a UDP socket is in a sockmap, sk_data_ready is
sk_psock_verdict_data_ready(), which calls udp_read_skb() -> recv_actor()
(sk_psock_verdict_recv) to run the attached SK_SKB verdict program in softirq.
If that program calls a socket-lookup helper (bpf_sk_lookup_tcp/udp,
bpf_skc_lookup_tcp), bpf_skc_lookup() does:

	if (skb->dev)
		caller_net = dev_net(skb->dev);

skb->dev still holds the dev_scratch value (a non-NULL integer), so dev_net()
dereferences it as a struct net_device * and the kernel takes a general
protection fault on a non-canonical address in softirq:

  Oops: general protection fault, probably for non-canonical address 0x1010000800004a0
  CPU: 1 UID: 0 PID: 1406 Comm: syz.2.19 Not tainted 7.1.0-rc6 #1 PREEMPT(full)
  RIP: 0010:bpf_skc_lookup net/core/filter.c:7033 [inline]
  RIP: 0010:bpf_sk_lookup+0x45/0x160 net/core/filter.c:7047
  Call Trace:
   <IRQ>
   bpf_prog_4675cb904b7071f8+0x12e/0x14e
   bpf_prog_run_pin_on_cpu+0xc6/0x1f0
   sk_psock_verdict_recv+0x1ba/0x350
   udp_read_skb+0x31a/0x370
   sk_psock_verdict_data_ready+0x2e3/0x600
   __udp_enqueue_schedule_skb+0x4c8/0x650
   udpv6_queue_rcv_one_skb+0x3ec/0x740
   udp6_unicast_rcv_skb+0x11d/0x140
   ip6_protocol_deliver_rcu+0x61e/0x950
   ip6_input_finish+0xa9/0x150
   NF_HOOK+0x286/0x2f0
   ip6_input+0x117/0x220
   NF_HOOK+0x286/0x2f0
   __netif_receive_skb+0x85/0x200
   process_backlog+0x374/0x9a0
   __napi_poll+0x4f/0x1c0
   net_rx_action+0x3b0/0x770
   handle_softirqs+0x15a/0x460
   do_softirq+0x57/0x80
   </IRQ>

The rmem charge that dev_scratch accounted for is released by skb_recv_udp() on
dequeue, just above, so the scratch is dead by the time recv_actor() runs. Clear
skb->dev so bpf_skc_lookup() falls back to sock_net(skb->sk), which
skb_set_owner_sk_safe() set just above.

Weakness: CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-53184?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2026-53184?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-53184 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-53184 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-2026-53184 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-53184 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 25 Jun 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-53184 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-2026-53184/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53184/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-53184
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-53184
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-53184

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53184/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.