Critical severity · published Jun 25, 2026
CVE-2026-53224
sctp: validate embedded INIT chunk and address list lengths in cookie
9.1
CVSS
0.5%
EPSS
No
On KEV
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sctp: validate embedded INIT chunk and address list lengths in cookie sctp_unpack_cookie() only checked that the embedded INIT chunk length did not exceed the remaining cookie payload, but did not ensure that the INIT chunk is large enough to contain a complete INIT header. A malformed COOKIE_ECHO can therefore carry a truncated INIT chunk whose length field is smaller than sizeof(struct sctp_init_chunk). Later, sctp_process_init() accesses INIT parameters unconditionally, which may lead to out-of-bounds reads. In addition, raw_addr_list_len is not fully validated against the remaining cookie payload. When cookie authentication is disabled, an attacker can supply an oversized raw_addr_list_len and cause sctp_raw_to_bind_addrs() to read beyond the end of the cookie. The address parser also lacks sufficient bounds checks for parameter headers and lengths, allowing malformed address parameters to trigger out-of-bounds reads. Fix this by: - requiring the embedded INIT chunk length to be at least sizeof(struct sctp_init_chunk); - validating that the INIT chunk and raw address list together fit within the cookie payload; - verifying sufficient data exists for each address parameter header and payload before parsing it. Note that sctp_verify_init() must be called after sctp_unpack_cookie() and before sctp_process_init() when cookie authentication is disabled. This will be addressed in a separate patch.
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
High
Scope
Unchanged
Exploitation
Is it being used?
Exploit prediction (EPSS)0.5% · higher than 45% of CVEs
Exploited in the wildNo evidence yet
CISA KEVNot listed
Ransomware campaign useNot known
Affected products
Which versions
KE
Kernel · Linux
2.6.12.1 before 6.18.36; 6.19 before 7.0.13; 2.6.12; 2.6.12; 2.6.12; 2.6.12; +8 more · source: NVD
LI
Linux · Linux
1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 before dd75066882ecc4ec8df3f5384b4b9fa9579be8f0; 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 before 29ab56e7660b6f849c10c46e87e085649df751eb; 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 before 7560afb8cddafd829e709d7ea09230e45a825557; 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 before 512a9bb77c04ac9927648ea58af617e472be96e6; 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 before 6f4c80a2a7e6d06753b89a578b710a2499a5e62b; 2.6.12 · source: vendor