CVE-2026-45966
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: apparmor: fix NULL pointer dereference in __unix_needs_revalidation When receiving file descriptors via SCM_RIGHTS, both the socket pointer and the socket's sk pointer can be NULL during socket setup or teardown, causing NULL pointer dereferences in __unix_needs_revalidation(). This is a regression in AppArmor 5.0.0 (kernel 6.17+) where the new __unix_needs_revalidation() function was added without proper NULL checks. The crash manifests as: BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0x0000000000000018 RIP: aa_file_perm+0xb7/0x3b0 (or +0xbe/0x3b0, +0xc0/0x3e0) Call Trace: apparmor_file_receive+0x42/0x80 security_file_receive+0x2e/0x50 receive_fd+0x1d/0xf0 scm_detach_fds+0xad/0x1c0 The function dereferences sock->sk->sk_family without checking if either sock or sock->sk is NULL first. Add NULL checks for both sock and sock->sk before accessing sk_family.
Predictions
Heuristic predictions, AS-IS, for prioritization only.
Mitigations
No mitigations published for this CVE yet.
The vendor-content worker queues fetches as references arrive (check back in a few minutes). Or — if you've already worked around this in production — publish your fix to the community-verified tier.
✚ Propose a mitigation on Community → Mitigations published via the community go through AI scoring + 2 human reviewers + 7-day silent objection window before landing here withsource_tier=community-verified.
OS impact
| OS | Version | Status | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| debian | bookworm | fixed | 0 |
| debian | bullseye | fixed | 0 |
| debian | forky | fixed | 6.18.14-1 |
| debian | sid | fixed | 6.18.14-1 |
| debian | trixie | fixed | 0 |
| sles | affected | |
References
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/fea017a7f6abe179decf575a2d8464c74edb3964
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e85bc9101afc4202aa2269967ce9d3ffbecd0994
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e2938ad00b21340c0362562dfedd7cfec0554d67
- https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2026-45966
- https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-45966.html
Community-verified mitigations for this CVE will appear above when contributors publish them.
Verify integrity in audit chain (admin only). AS-IS.