CVE-2026-68409: Software Security Vulnerability Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-g5f7-qj4q-4w5v
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CVSS 8.8
CWE-416
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-68409 is a HIGH (CVSS 8.8) security vulnerability vulnerability (CWE-416: Use After Free) affecting Software libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The weakness occurs when the product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. at some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory "belongs" to the code that operates on the new pointer.. Remediation is available in the latest vendor maintenance releases.

CVE-2026-68409 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-68409
GHSA Identifier GHSA-g5f7-qj4q-4w5v
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 8.8
CWE Classification CWE-416: Use After Free
Affected Product Software
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 8.8

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Attack Vector Adjacent (AV:A)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2026-68409

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Software dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

mvn dependency:tree

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2026-68409, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Software in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than the patched release), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree command inspects the resolved dependency graph declared in your project's POM files; it does not perform automated security scanning or inspect runtime dynamic classpaths. Always verify runtime container classpaths and shaded JARs.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-416: Use After Free, where the product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. at some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory "belongs" to the code that operates on the new pointer. In Software, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: mac80211: defer link RX stats percpu free to RCU sta_remove_link() frees a removed MLO link's RX stats percpu buffer right away, but defers only the link container to RCU: sta_info_free_link(&alloc->info); kfree_rcu(alloc, rcu_head); The RX fast path reads link_sta under rcu_read_lock and writes the percpu stats. A reader that resolved link_sta before the removal keeps the pointer. The container stays alive from the kfree_rcu, so the read still works. But the percpu block it points to is already freed. This needs uses_rss. That is when pcpu_rx_stats exists. The full STA teardown frees the deflink stats only after synchronize_net(). The link removal path had no such barrier. The race is hard to win in practice, but the free should still wait for RCU. Free the link together with its data from a single RCU callback, so the percpu block is reclaimed only after readers drain.

References

NVD — CVE-2026-68409 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-68409
git.kernel.org/stable/c/2aa1789880... WEB
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2aa1789880fa5e41049b0f6a74a4fc2fa1997610
git.kernel.org/stable/c/a03fceae0c... WEB
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a03fceae0c65b31ce31840dac5e26684ceecb65b
git.kernel.org/stable/c/aa2eb62525... WEB
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/aa2eb62525188269cdd402a583b9a8ed94657ff0

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-68409?
CVE-2026-68409 is a security vulnerability in Software classified as a security vulnerability vulnerability under CWE-416: Use After Free.
Which Software versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to current release patches.
What version fixes CVE-2026-68409?
Upgrading to current release patches (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-68409?
CVE-2026-68409 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.8 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-68409?
CVE-2026-68409 is classified under CWE-416: Use After Free (The product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory "belongs" to the code that operates on the new pointer.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2026-68409?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
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  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-g5f7-qj4q-4w5v",
  "modified" : "2026-08-14T00:31:58Z",
  "published" : "2026-08-10T15:33:50Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-68409" ],
  "details" : "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nwifi: mac80211: defer link RX stats percpu free to RCU\n\nsta_remove_link() frees a removed MLO link's RX stats percpu buffer right\naway, but defers only the link container to RCU:\n\n\tsta_info_free_link(&alloc->info);\n\tkfree_rcu(alloc, rcu_head);\n\nThe RX fast path reads link_sta under rcu_read_lock and writes the percpu\nstats. A reader that resolved link_sta before the removal keeps the\npointer. The container stays alive from the kfree_rcu, so the read still\nworks. But the percpu block it points to is already freed. This needs\nuses_rss. That is when pcpu_rx_stats exists.\n\nThe full STA teardown frees the deflink stats only after\nsynchronize_net(). The link removal path had no such barrier. The race is\nhard to win in practice, but the free should still wait for RCU.\n\nFree the link together with its data from a single RCU callback, so the\npercpu block is reclaimed only after readers drain.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-68409"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2aa1789880fa5e41049b0f6a74a4fc2fa1997610"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a03fceae0c65b31ce31840dac5e26684ceecb65b"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/aa2eb62525188269cdd402a583b9a8ed94657ff0"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-416" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : false,
    "github_reviewed_at" : null,
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-08-10T13:20:34Z"
  }
}