CVE-2026-23454 | Linux Kernel up to 7.0-rc4 IRQ mana_hwc_destroy_channel null pointer dereference

VDB-355159 · CVE-2026-23454 · GCVE-0-2026-23454 LINUX KERNEL UP TO 7.0-RC4 IRQ MANA_HWC_DESTROY_CHANNEL NULL POINTER DEREFERENCE HISTORYDIFFRELATEJSONXMLCTI CVSS Meta Temp Score Current Exploit Price (≈) CTI Interest Score 4.6 $0-$5k 0.75 Summaryinfo A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 7.0-rc4. It has been rated as critical. This affects the function mana_hwc_destroy_channel of the component IRQ Handler. This manipulation causes null pointer dereference. The identification of this vulnerability is CVE-2026-23454. There is no exploit available. Upgrading the affected component is advised. Detailsinfo A vulnerability classified as critical was found in Linux Kernel up to 7.0-rc4. Affected by this vulnerability is the function mana_hwc_destroy_channel of the component IRQ Handler. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a null pointer dereference vulnerability. The CWE definition for the vulnerability is CWE-476. A NULL pointer dereference occurs when the application dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid, but is NULL, typically causing a crash or exit. As an impact it is known to affect availability. The summary by CVE is: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: mana: fix use-after-free in mana_hwc_destroy_channel() by reordering teardown A potential race condition exists in mana_hwc_destroy_channel() where hwc->caller_ctx is freed before the HWC's Completion Queue (CQ) and Event Queue (EQ) are destroyed. This allows an in-flight CQ interrupt handler to dereference freed memory, leading to a use-after-free or NULL pointer dereference in mana_hwc_handle_resp(). mana_smc_teardown_hwc() signals the hardware to stop but does not synchronize against IRQ handlers already executing on other CPUs. The IRQ synchronization only happens in mana_hwc_destroy_cq() via mana_gd_destroy_eq() -> mana_gd_deregister_irq(). Since this runs after kfree(hwc->caller_ctx), a concurrent mana_hwc_rx_event_handler() can dereference freed caller_ctx (and rxq->msg_buf) in mana_hwc_handle_resp(). Fix this by reordering teardown to reverse-of-creation order: destroy the TX/RX work queues and CQ/EQ before freeing hwc->caller_ctx. This ensures all in-flight interrupt handlers complete before the memory they access is freed. It is possible to read the advisory at git.kernel.org. This vulnerability is known as CVE-2026-23454 since 01/13/2026. The exploitation appears to be difficult. Technical details of the vulnerability are known, but there is no available exploit. Upgrading to version 6.1.167, 6.6.130, 6.12.78, 6.18.20, 6.19.10 or 7.0-rc5 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch e23bf444512cb85d76012080a76cd1f9e967448e/249e905571583a434d4ea8d6f92ccc0eef337115/2b001901f689021acd7bf2dceed74a1bdcaaa1f9/afdb1533eb9c05432aeb793a7280fa827c502f5c/05d345719d85b927cba74afac4d5322de3aa4256/fa103fc8f56954a60699a29215cb713448a39e87 is able to eliminate this problem. The bugfix is ready for download at git.kernel.org. The best possible mitigation is suggested to be upgrading to the latest version. Productinfo Type Operating System Vendor Linux Name Kernel Version 6.1.166 6.6.129 6.12.0 6.12.1 6.12.2 6.12.3 6.12.4 6.12.5 6.12.6 6.12.7 6.12.8 6.12.9 6.12.10 6.12.11 6.12.12 6.12.13 6.12.14 6.12.15 6.12.16 6.12.17 6.12.18 6.12.19 6.12.20 6.12.21 6.12.22 6.12.23 6.12.24 6.12.25 6.12.26 6.12.27 6.12.28 6.12.29 6.12.30 6.12.31 6.12.32 6.12.33 6.12.34 6.12.35 6.12.36 6.12.37 6.12.38 6.12.39 6.12.40 6.12.41 6.12.42 6.12.43 6.12.44 6.12.45 6.12.46 6.12.47 6.12.48 6.12.49 6.12.50 6.12.51 6.12.52 6.12.53 6.12.54 6.12.55 6.12.56 6.12.57 6.12.58 6.12.59 6.12.60 6.12.61 6.12.62 6.12.63 6.12.64 6.12.65 6.12.66 6.12.67 6.12.68 6.12.69 6.12.70 6.12.71 6.12.72 6.12.73 6.12.74 6.12.75 6.12.76 6.12.77 6.18.0 6.18.1 6.18.2 6.18.3 6.18.4 6.18.5 6.18.6 6.18.7 6.18.8 6.18.9 6.18.10 6.18.11 6.18.12 6.18.13 6.18.14 6.18.15 6.18.16 6.18.17 6.18.18 6.18.19 6.19.0 6.19.1 6.19.2 6.19.3 6.19.4 6.19.5 6.19.6 6.19.7 6.19.8 6.19.9 7.0-rc1 7.0-rc2 7.0-rc3 7.0-rc4 License open-source Website Vendor: https://www.kernel.org/ CPE 2.3info 🔒 🔒 🔒 CPE 2.2info 🔒 🔒 🔒 CVSSv4info VulDB Vector: 🔒 VulDB Reliability: 🔍 CVSSv3info VulDB Meta Base Score: 4.8 VulDB Meta Temp Score: 4.6 VulDB Base Score: 4.8 VulDB Temp Score: 4.6 VulDB Vector: 🔒 VulDB Reliability: 🔍 CVSSv2info Vector Complexity Authentication Confidentiality Integrity Availability Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock VulDB Base Score: 🔒 VulDB Temp Score: 🔒 VulDB Reliability: 🔍 Exploitinginfo Class: Null pointer dereference CWE: CWE-476 / CWE-404 CAPEC: 🔒 ATT&CK: 🔒 Physical: No Local: No Remote: Partially Availability: 🔒 Status: Not defined Price Prediction: 🔍 Current Price Estimation: 🔒 0-Day Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Today Unlock Unlock Unlock Unlock Threat Intelligenceinfo Interest: 🔍 Active Actors: 🔍 Active APT Groups: 🔍 Countermeasuresinfo Recommended: Upgrade Status: 🔍 0-Day Time: 🔒 Upgrade: Kernel 6.1.167/6.6.130/6.12.78/6.18.20/6.19.10/7.0-rc5 Patch: e23bf444512cb85d76012080a76cd1f9e967448e/249e905571583a434d4ea8d6f92ccc0eef337115/2b001901f689021acd7bf2dceed74a1bdcaaa1f9/afdb1533eb9c05432aeb793a7280fa827c502f5c/05d345719d85b927cba74afac4d5322de3aa4256/fa103fc8f56954a60699a29215cb713448a39e87 Timelineinfo 01/13/2026 CVE reserved 04/03/2026 +79 days Advisory disclosed 04/03/2026 +0 days VulDB entry created 04/03/2026 +0 days VulDB entry last update Sourcesinfo Vendor: kernel.org Advisory: git.kernel.org Status: Confirmed CVE: CVE-2026-23454 (🔒) GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2026-23454 GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-355159 Entryinfo Created: 04/03/2026 18:16 Changes: 04/03/2026 18:16 (60) Complete: 🔍 Cache ID: 99:6B0:101 Discussion No comments yet. 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