CVE-2026-72019
NVD analysis in progress
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: macsec: don't read an unset MAC header in macsec_encrypt() macsec_encrypt() reads the Ethernet header via eth_hdr(skb) (skb->head + skb->mac_header) to memmove() the 12 source/destination MAC bytes forward and make room for the SecTAG. On the AF_PACKET SOCK_RAW + PACKET_QDISC_BYPASS transmit path the skb reaches the macsec ndo_start_xmit() with the MAC header unset, so eth_hdr(skb) resolves to skb->head + (u16)~0 and the read is out of bounds: a 12-byte heap over-read that is also emitted on the wire as the frame's outer source/destination MAC. KASAN reports a slab-out-of-bounds read in macsec_start_xmit() on 6.0; on current mainline a CONFIG_DEBUG_NET build flags it as an unset mac header in skb_mac_header(). On the TX path the L2 header is at skb->data, so use skb_eth_hdr(), added by commit 96cc4b69581d ("macvlan: do not assume mac_header is set in macvlan_broadcast()") for exactly this purpose.
What this means
- Exposure
- Exploitable with local access to the machine, with an ordinary user account and with no action from the victim.
- Impact
- An attacker can read sensitive data, alter some data and take the service offline.
- Likelihood
- Its EPSS score stays low: nothing points to imminent exploitation, which is no reason to leave it unpatched.
What to doFold into the next patch cycle.
Read automatically from the CVSS vector, the weakness type (CWE) and the EPSS score. The technical description above remains the one published by NIST.