CVE-2026-23206 | dpaa2-switch: prevent ZERO_SIZE_PTR dereference when num_ifs is zero

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: dpaa2-switch: prevent ZERO_SIZE_PTR dereference when num_ifs is zero The driver allocates arrays for ports, FDBs, and filter blocks using kcalloc() with ethsw->sw_attr.num_ifs as the element count. When the device reports zero interfaces (either due to hardware configuration or firmware issues), kcalloc(0, ...) returns ZERO_SIZE_PTR (0x10) instead of NULL. Later in dpaa2_switch_probe(), the NAPI initialization unconditionally accesses ethsw->ports[0]->netdev, which attempts to dereference ZERO_SIZE_PTR (address 0x10), resulting in a kernel panic. Add a check to ensure num_ifs is greater than zero after retrieving device attributes. This prevents the zero-sized allocations and subsequent invalid pointer dereference.

Published: 2026-02-14 Last update: 2026-03-19 Assigner: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2026-23206 is rated Low Risk (24.1/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.02%). Mandatory action: Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2026-23206

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-02-15 0.02%

Full EPSS history (1 record total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2026-23206

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
5.5 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
1.8 3.6 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2026-23206

OS Trackers for CVE-2026-23206

vendor priority summary link
debian unimportant CVE-2026-23206 unimportant priority: Debian including 2 source packages (linux, linux-6.1), 6 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 6. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2026-23206
redhat medium https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-23206
suse medium CVE-2026-23206 severity moderate: SUSE including 16 source package names (cluster-md-kmp-default, dlm-kmp-default, …), 64 product×package rows across 13 product lines (SUSE Linux Enterprise Live Patching 12 SP5, SUSE Linux Enterprise Micro 5.0, … (13 product lines)): Known Not Affected 64. https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-23206/
ubuntu medium CVE-2026-23206 medium priority: Ubuntu including 157 source packages (linux, linux-allwinner-5.19, …), 1256 status rows across 8 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, noble, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 871, ignored 169, released 83, needed 82, not-affected 46, pending 5. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2026-23206

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2026-23206

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
linux linux_kernel >= 5.13, < 5.15.200 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 5.16, < 6.1.163 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 6.2, < 6.6.124 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 6.7, < 6.12.70 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 6.13, < 6.18.10 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc7:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 6.19 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.19:rc8:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2026-23206

cvelogic Threat Intelligence