Highly exploitable, CVE-2026-63872 poses a critical security risk that could lead to severe breaches.
Status: Awaiting Analysis
Last updated: 🕠 27 Jul 2026, 17:44 UTC
Originally published on: 🕒 19 Jul 2026, 15:16 UTC
Time between publication and last update: 8 days
CVSS Release: version 3
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Secondary
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
CVE-2026-63872: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: esp: fix page frag reference leak on skb_to_sgvec failure In esp_output_tail(), when esp->inplace is false, the old skb page frags are replaced with a new page from the xfrm page_frag cache. The source scatterlist (sg) is built from the old frags before the replacement, and esp_ssg_unref() is responsible for releasing the old page references after the crypto operation completes. However, if the second skb_to_sgvec() call (which builds the destination scatterlist from the new page) fails, the code jumps to error_free which only calls kfree(tmp). The old page frag references captured in the source scatterlist are never released: 1. sg[] is built from old frags via skb_to_sgvec() (no extra get_page) 2. nr_frags is set to 1 and frag[0] is replaced with the new page 3. Second skb_to_sgvec() fails -> goto error_free 4. kfree(tmp) frees the sg[] memory but old frags are not unref'd 5. kfree_skb() only releases frag[0] (the new page), not the old ones Fix this by adding a bool parameter to esp_ssg_unref() that, when true, unconditionally unrefs the source scatterlist frags without checking req->src and req->dst, since those fields are not yet initialized by aead_request_set_crypt() at the point of the error. Existing callers pass false to preserve the original behavior. The same issue exists in both esp4 and esp6 as the code is identical.
The exploitability of CVE-2026-63872 depends on two key factors: attack complexity (the level of effort required to execute an exploit) and privileges required (the access level an attacker needs).
With low attack complexity and no required privileges, CVE-2026-63872 is an easy target for cybercriminals. Organizations should prioritize immediate mitigation measures to prevent unauthorized access and data breaches.
A lower complexity and fewer privilege requirements make exploitation easier. Security teams should evaluate these aspects to determine the urgency of mitigation strategies, such as patch management and access control policies.
Attack Complexity (AC) measures the difficulty in executing an exploit. A high AC means that specific conditions must be met, making an attack more challenging, while a low AC means the vulnerability can be exploited with minimal effort.
Privileges Required (PR) determine the level of system access necessary for an attack. Vulnerabilities requiring no privileges are more accessible to attackers, whereas high privilege requirements limit exploitation to authorized users with elevated access.
Above is the CVSS Sub-score Breakdown for CVE-2026-63872, illustrating how Base, Impact, and Exploitability factors combine to form the overall severity rating. A higher sub-score typically indicates a more severe or easier-to-exploit vulnerability.
Below is the Impact Analysis for CVE-2026-63872, showing how Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability might be affected if the vulnerability is exploited. Higher values usually signal greater potential damage.
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