CVE-2022-50726

A flaw was found in the net/mlx5 subsystem of the Linux kernel where a race condition in the asynchronous command interface can lead to a use-after-free condition. The function mlx5_cmd_cleanup_async_ctx may return before all callback handlers have completed, allowing the context to be freed while another thread still references it. Under certain sequences of events, this can result in invalid memory access and potentially escalate privileges or cause kernel instability on affected systems

This vulnerability is rated as having a Moderate impact for Red Hat Enterprise Linux because exploitation requires winning a narrow race condition during asynchronous command cleanup and is constrained to systems utilizing Mellanox ConnectX hardware. While a use-after-free can result in memory corruption or a denial-of-service condition, triggering the synchronization failure requires specific asynchronous callback execution during teardown, limiting practical exploit reliability. Systems without Mellanox network hardware or where the mlx5_core driver is not loaded are not exposed.

The CVSS score(s) listed for this vulnerability do not reflect the associated product's status, and are included for informational purposes to better understand the severity of this vulnerability.

Mitigation for this issue is either not available or the currently available options don't meet the Red Hat Product Security criteria comprising ease of use and deployment, applicability to widespread installation base or stability.