CVE-2026-72429

What is known

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ipv6: ioam: fix type confusion of dst_entry IOAM uses a dummy dst_entry(null_dst) to mark that the destination should not be changed after the transformation. This dst is stored in the IOAM lwt state and may be passed to dst_cache_set_ip6(). However, the IPv6 dst cache path eventually calls rt6_get_cookie(), which treats the dst_entry as part of a struct rt6_info. Since the null_dst was embedded directly as a struct dst_entry in struct ioam6_lwt, this resulted in an invalid cast and rt6_get_cookie() reading fields from the wrong object. In practice, the wrong cookie is not used while dst->obsolete is zero, but rt6_get_cookie() may also access per-cpu value when rt->sernum is zero. In this case, rt->sernum aliases ioam6_lwt::cache::reset_ts, which can become zero, making this a potential invalid pointer access. Fix this by embedding a full struct rt6_info for the dummy IPv6 route and passing its dst member to the dst APIs.

Business impact

Successful exploitation of CVE-2026-72429, a critical vulnerability (CVSS 9.8) affecting the affected product, may affect the confidentiality, integrity or availability of the vulnerable environment. The exact impact depends on the installed version, exposed interfaces and deployment configuration.

Recommended administrator action

Confirm whether the affected product is present and compare installed versions with the vendor advisory and NVD record. Apply the vendor patch or documented mitigation; until remediation is complete, reduce exposure of affected interfaces, review relevant logs and monitor for indicators of exploitation. DataHouse can support version verification, managed patching, network exposure reduction, log review and backup validation for dedicated, cloud and colocated environments.

Sources

• NVD
• Reference
• Reference
• Reference