CVE-2026-23414

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: tls: Purge async_hold in tls_decrypt_async_wait() The async_hold queue pins encrypted input skbs while the AEAD engine references their scatterlist data. Once tls_decrypt_async_wait() returns, every AEAD operation has completed and the engine no longer references those skbs, so they can be freed unconditionally. A subsequent patch adds batch async decryption to tls_sw_read_sock(), introducing a new call site that must drain pending AEAD operations and release held skbs. Move __skb_queue_purge(&ctx->async_hold) into tls_decrypt_async_wait() so the purge is centralized and every caller -- recvmsg's drain path, the -EBUSY fallback in tls_do_decryption(), and the new read_sock batch path -- releases held skbs on synchronization without each site managing the purge independently. This fixes a leak when tls_strp_msg_hold() fails part-way through, after having added some cloned skbs to the async_hold queue. tls_decrypt_sg() will then call tls_decrypt_async_wait() to process all pending decrypts, and drop back to synchronous mode, but tls_sw_recvmsg() only flushes the async_hold queue when one record has been processed in "fully-async" mode, which may not be the case here. [[email protected]: added leak comment]

CVSS Details

CVSS Score

7.5

Severity

HIGH

CVSS Vector

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

Configurations (Affected Products)

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* - VULNERABLE

Linux Kernel < 6.x (Specific commits apply to stable branches)

PoC / Exploit Code

⚠ For Security Research Only

The following code is for security research and authorized testing only.

python

// Conceptual PoC to trigger the condition
// Requires a client sending data to a kernel TLS server
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <string.h>
#include <unistd.h>
#include <arpa/inet.h>
#include <linux/tls.h>

int main() {
    // Setup socket and TLS context...
    // Send data that triggers async decryption then partial failure path
    // Monitor kernel memory for leaks
    printf("Triggering TLS async hold partial failure...\n");
    return 0;
}

References

[1] CVE.org https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-23414
[2] NVD NIST https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-23414
[3] CVE Details https://www.cvedetails.com/cve/CVE-2026-23414/
[4] VulDB https://vuldb.com/cve/CVE-2026-23414
[5] https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2dcf324855c34e7f934ce978aa19b645a8f3ee71
[6] https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/6dc11e0bd0a5466bcc76d275c09e5537bd0597dd
[7] https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/84a8335d8300576f1b377ae24abca1d9f197807f
[8] https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9f557c7eae127b44d2e863917dc986a4b6cb1269
[9] https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ac435be7c7613eb13a5a8ceb5182e10b50c9ce87
[10] https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/fd8037e1f18ca5336934d0e0e7e1a4fe097e749d

Raw JSON Data

JSON

{"cve": {"id": "CVE-2026-23414", "sourceIdentifier": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67", "published": "2026-04-02T12:16:20.633", "lastModified": "2026-04-27T14:16:31.333", "vulnStatus": "Modified", "cveTags": [], "descriptions": [{"lang": "en", "value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\ntls: Purge async_hold in tls_decrypt_async_wait()\n\nThe async_hold queue pins encrypted input skbs while\nthe AEAD engine references their scatterlist data. Once\ntls_decrypt_async_wait() returns, every AEAD operation\nhas completed and the engine no longer references those\nskbs, so they can be freed unconditionally.\n\nA subsequent patch adds batch async decryption to\ntls_sw_read_sock(), introducing a new call site that\nmust drain pending AEAD operations and release held\nskbs. Move __skb_queue_purge(&ctx->async_hold) into\ntls_decrypt_async_wait() so the purge is centralized\nand every caller -- recvmsg's drain path, the -EBUSY\nfallback in tls_do_decryption(), and the new read_sock\nbatch path -- releases held skbs on synchronization\nwithout each site managing the purge independently.\n\nThis fixes a leak when tls_strp_msg_hold() fails part-way through,\nafter having added some cloned skbs to the async_hold\nqueue. tls_decrypt_sg() will then call tls_decrypt_async_wait() to\nprocess all pending decrypts, and drop back to synchronous mode, but\ntls_sw_recvmsg() only flushes the async_hold queue when one record has\nbeen processed in \"fully-async\" mode, which may not be the case here.\n\n[[email protected]: added leak comment]"}], "metrics": {"cvssMetricV31": [{"source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67", "type": "Secondary", "cvssData": {"version": "3.1", "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H", "baseScore": 7.5, "baseSeverity": "HIGH", "attackVector": "NETWORK", "attackComplexity": "LOW", "privilegesRequired": "NONE", "userInteraction": "NONE", "scope": "UNCHANGED", "confidentialityImpact": "NONE", "integrityImpact": "NONE", "availabilityImpact": "HIGH"}, "exploitabilityScore": 3.9, "impactScore": 3.6}, {"source": "[email protected]", "type": "Primary", "cvssData": {"version": "3.1", "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H", "baseScore": 5.5, "baseSeverity": "MEDIUM", "attackVector": "LOCAL", "attackComplexity": "LOW", "privilegesRequired": "LOW", "userInteraction": "NONE", "scope": "UNCHANGED", "confidentialityImpact": "NONE", "integrityImpact": "NONE", "availabilityImpact": "HIGH"}, "exploitabilityScore": 1.8, "impactScore": 3.6}]}, "weaknesses": [{"source": "[email protected]", "type": "Primary", "description": [{"lang": "en", "value": "CWE-401"}]}], "configurations": [{"nodes": [{"operator": "OR", "negate": false, "cpeMatch": [{"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*", "versionStartIncluding": "6.1.158", "versionEndExcluding": "6.1.168", "matchCriteriaId": "74354A9E-64FE-48C2-B604-2DD58B23322C"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*", "versionStartIncluding": "6.6.114", "versionEndExcluding": "6.6.131", "matchCriteriaId": "716DD6F7-573E-4E87-AAEC-09CE13915C2F"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*", "versionStartIncluding": "6.12.55", "versionEndExcluding": "6.12.80", "matchCriteriaId": "DC24881D-6C39-4AC6-99CE-F73C48E329DF"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*", "versionStartIncluding": "6.17.5", "versionEndExcluding": "6.18", "matchCriteriaId": "27929282-2519-484B-B04C-5B62B31FBC5E"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*", "versionStartIncluding": "6.18.1", "versionEndExcluding": "6.18.21", "matchCriteriaId": "E2E98868-4027-46EE-AD08-92C9D7283181"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*", "versionStartIncluding": "6.19", "versionEndExcluding": "6.19.11", "matchCriteriaId": "4CA2E747-A9EC-4518-9AA2-B4247FC748B7"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.18:-:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "DCE57113-2223-4308-A0F2-5E6ECFBB3C23"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "F253B622-8837-4245-BCE5-A7BF8FC76A16"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "4AE85AD8-4641-4E7C-A2F4-305E2CD9EE64"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "F666C8D8-6538-46D4-B318-87610DE64C34"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "02259FDA-961B-47BC-AE7F-93D7EC6E90C2"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "58A9FEFF-C040-420D-8F0A-BFDAAA1DF258"}, {"vulnerable": true, "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:7.0:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:*", "matchCriteriaId": "1D2315C0-D46F-4 ... 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