# CVE-2026-74398: ipv6: addrconf: bail out of dad_failure when state is no longer POSTDAD

> A race condition in the Linux kernel IPv6 address configuration allows a local attacker to cause a system crash via a general protection fault.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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:** 15 Aug 2026
- **Updated:** 16 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2026-74398, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-74398, GHSA-jvq3-c9fm-53r7, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-74398

## What is CVE-2026-74398?

CVE-2026-74398 is a critical vulnerability in Linux, published on 15 Aug 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:

ipv6: addrconf: bail out of dad_failure when state is no longer POSTDAD

addrconf_dad_failure() transitions ifp->state from DAD to POSTDAD
via addrconf_dad_end(), which drops ifp->lock on return.  The lock
is re-acquired after net_info_ratelimited().  A concurrent
ipv6_del_addr() can take the lock in that window, set ifp->state
to DEAD and run list_del_rcu(&ifp->if_list).

addrconf_dad_failure() then overwrites DEAD with ERRDAD at errdad:
and schedules a new dad_work.  The work calls ipv6_del_addr()
again, hitting the already-poisoned list entry:

  general protection fault: 0000 [#1] SMP NOPTI
  CPU: 4 PID: 217 Comm: kworker/4:1
  Workqueue: ipv6_addrconf addrconf_dad_work
  RIP: 0010:ipv6_del_addr+0xe9/0x280
  RAX: dead000000000122
  Call Trace:
   addrconf_dad_stop+0x113/0x140
   addrconf_dad_work+0x28c/0x430
   process_one_work+0x1eb/0x3b0
   worker_thread+0x4d/0x400
   kthread+0x104/0x140
   ret_from_fork+0x35/0x40

Fold the addrconf_dad_end() logic into addrconf_dad_failure() under
a single ifp->lock critical section.  The STABLE_PRIVACY branch
temporarily drops ifp->lock around address regeneration, so at
lock_errdad: verify the state is still POSTDAD before transitioning
to ERRDAD; bail out otherwise to avoid overwriting a state set by
another path while the lock was released.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-74398?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-74398?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-74398 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-74398 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-74398 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-74398 is a critical vulnerability in Linux, published on 15 Aug 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-2026-74398 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux. 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-2026-74398/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-74398/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-74398
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-74398
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-74398

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-74398/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.