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Mallory
High

Stack out-of-bounds write in Linux kernel BPF devmap

IdentifiersCVE-2026-23359CWE-121

CVE-2026-23359 is a Linux kernel memory-safety flaw in the BPF devmap/XDP redirect path. The vulnerable logic is in get_upper_ifindexes(), which iterates over upper network devices and stores their interface indices into a caller-provided array without enforcing array bounds. Callers assumed the number of upper devices would not exceed MAX_NEST_DEV and allocated excluded_devices[1+MAX_NEST_DEV] on the stack, but that assumption is invalid because a device can have more than MAX_NEST_DEV upper devices, for example many macvlans. When more entries are written than the stack buffer can hold, a stack out-of-bounds write occurs. The fix adds a maximum-size parameter to get_upper_ifindexes(); if too many upper devices are present, the kernel now returns -EOVERFLOW and aborts the redirect.

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ANALYST BRIEF

Impact, mitigation & remediation

What it means. What to do now. Patch path, mitigations, and the assume-compromise checklist.

Impact

What an attacker gets, and what they’ve been doing with it.

Successful triggering causes kernel stack memory corruption in the networking/BPF path. The documented consequences include denial of service via kernel crash or instability, and because this is a stack out-of-bounds write in kernel context, it may also create conditions for further compromise such as corruption of adjacent stack data. The provided source material specifically confirms availability impact and notes confidentiality/integrity impact in SUSE scoring, but does not provide a verified public statement of reliable privilege escalation or code execution.

Mitigation

If you can’t patch tonight, do this now.

If immediate patching is not possible, reduce exposure by avoiding the specific trigger conditions in the XDP/BPF redirect path: do not use configurations that combine an attached XDP program with BPF_F_BROADCAST and BPF_F_EXCLUDE_INGRESS on devices that may have large numbers of upper devices. Limit or avoid creating more than MAX_NEST_DEV upper devices, such as large numbers of macvlans, on affected interfaces. Restrict who can load/manage BPF/XDP programs and create or reconfigure network devices, since the documented attack vector is local and requires high privileges.

Remediation

Patch, then assume compromise.

Apply a kernel update that includes the fix for CVE-2026-23359. The remediation is the upstream change that adds a max parameter to get_upper_ifindexes(), performs bounds checking on the upper-device index collection, and returns -EOVERFLOW to abort the redirect when the number of upper devices exceeds the allowed limit. Vendor advisories indicate fixed kernel packages were released across multiple SUSE product lines, including versions such as kernel-default 6.12.0-160000.34.1 for SLE 16.0-related products and kernel-default 6.4.0-47.1 / 6.4.0-150700.53.60.1 for certain other supported lines. Reboot after installing the updated kernel.
PUBLIC EXPLOITS

Exploits

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VALID 0 / 0 TOTALView more in app

No public exploit code observed for this vulnerability.

EXPOSURE SURFACE

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VendorProductType
LinuxLinux Kerneloperating_system

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ACTIVITY FEED

Recent activity

9 sources tracked across advisories, community write-ups, and news. New activity surfaces here as Mallory finds it.

What this page doesn’t show

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Exposure mapping

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Threat actor evidence

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Associated malware

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Detection signatures

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Social activity3

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