CVE-2026-72398

Description

A flaw was found in the Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) implementation within the Linux kernel. When cookie authentication is disabled, a remote attacker can tamper with the INIT chunk data during the SCTP handshake. This occurs because the reconstructed INIT chunk from the COOKIE-ECHO message is not re-verified, leading to the processing of untrusted data. Successful exploitation can result in a denial of service, as new associations are freed and packets are discarded.

Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) Score Details

Info alert:Important note

CVSS scores for open source components depend on vendor-specific factors (e.g. version or build chain). Therefore, Red Hat's score and impact rating can be different from NVD and other vendors. Red Hat remains the authoritative CVE Naming Authority (CNA) source for its products and services (see Red Hat classifications).

The following CVSS metrics and score provided are preliminary and subject to review.

CVSS v3 Score Breakdown

Red HatNVDcve.org
Base Score7N/A9.8
Attack VectorLocalN/ANetwork
Attack ComplexityHighN/ALow
Privileges RequiredLowN/ANone
User InteractionNoneN/ANone
ScopeUnchangedN/AUnchanged
ConfidentialityHighN/AHigh
Integrity ImpactHighN/AHigh
Availability ImpactHighN/AHigh

Vector

Red Hat: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

cve.org: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Understanding the Weakness (CWE)

Integrity,Other

Technical Impact: Modify Application Data; Other

Integrity checks usually use a secret key that helps authenticate the data origin. Skipping integrity checking generally opens up the possibility that new data from an invalid source can be injected.

Integrity,Other

Technical Impact: Other

Data that is parsed and used may be corrupted.

Non-Repudiation,Other

Technical Impact: Hide Activities; Other

Without a checksum check, it is impossible to determine if any changes have been made to the data after it was sent.

Frequently Asked Questions

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