Medium [CVE-2026-52939] fix NULL deref in rds_ib_send_cqe_handler on masked atomic completion
This medium-severity Red Hat Linux advisory covers CVE-2026-52939 affecting Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6, Red Hat package: kernel.
Aggregated and source-linked by VulniPulse. Data sources, validation and limitations.
VulniPulse record published Record updated
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net/rds: fix NULL deref in rds_ib_send_cqe_handler() on masked atomic completion rds_ib_xmit_atomic() always programs a masked atomic opcode (IB_WR_MASKED_ATOMIC_CMP_AND_SWP or IB_WR_MASKED_ATOMIC_FETCH_AND_ADD) for every RDS atomic cmsg.
But the completion-side switch in rds_ib_send_unmap_op() only handles the non-masked opcodes, so a masked atomic completion falls through to default and returns rm == NULL while send->s_op is left set. rds_ib_send_cqe_handler() then dereferences the NULL rm via rm->m_final_op, oopsing in softirq context.
An unprivileged AF_RDS sendmsg() of an atomic cmsg over an active RDS/IB connection triggers it; on hardware that natively accepts masked atomics (mlx4, mlx5) no extra setup is needed. RDS/IB: rds_ib_send_unmap_op: unexpected opcode 0xd in WR!
Affected products named by the advisory: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6; Red Hat package: kernel.
Is CVE-2026-52939 exploited?
No exploitation is reported in the sources VulniPulse tracks: CVE-2026-52939 is not in the CISA KEV catalog (checked ) and this advisory does not report exploitation. That is not proof the vulnerability cannot be exploited.
How do I fix CVE-2026-52939?
The advisory VulniPulse tracks names no fixed release. Follow Red Hat's guidance for workarounds and updates.
Confirm against the vendor advisory before you patch.
Affected versions
No affected-version range was extracted from the source record. The vendor advisory is authoritative. Check it before change work.
Official advisory · medium-confidence parse· fetched 15 days ago·verify at source
Fixed versions
No fixed release is recorded yet. That does not prove no patch exists. Confirm against the vendor advisory.
Official advisory · medium-confidence parse· fetched 15 days ago·verify at source
Mitigation
The source record does not include mitigation steps. That does not mean no fix exists. Read the vendor advisory below for the authoritative guidance.
Official advisory · medium-confidence parse· fetched 15 days ago·verify at source
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