wifi: ath9k: hif_usb: don't dereference hif_dev after re-arming firmware request
Key facts
- Attack vector
- —
- Privileges required
- —
- User interaction
- —
- Attack complexity
- —
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- —
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 14 fixed, 3 without a fix
No CVSS vector from any source. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: ath9k: hif_usb: don't dereference hif_dev after re-arming firmware request ath9k_hif_request_firmware() re-arms an asynchronous firmware load via request_firmware_nowait(), passing hif_dev as the completion context, and then still dereferences hif_dev: dev_info(&hif_dev->udev->dev, "ath9k_htc: Firmware %s requested\n", hif_dev->fw_name); The re-armed callback ath9k_hif_usb_firmware_cb() runs on the "events" workqueue and, when the firmware is missing, walks the retry chain into ath9k_hif_usb_firmware_fail() -> complete_all(&hif_dev->fw_done). That releases the wait_for_completion(&hif_dev->fw_done) in a concurrent ath9k_hif_usb_disconnect(), which then kfree()s hif_dev. The trailing dev_info() in the frame that re-armed the request can therefore read freed memory (hif_dev->udev, the first field of struct hif_device_usb): BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in ath9k_hif_request_firmware Read of size 8 ... by task kworker/... ath9k_hif_request_firmware ath9k_hif_usb_firmware_cb drivers/net/wireless/ath/ath9k/hif_usb.c:1247 request_firmware_work_func Allocated by ...: ath9k_hif_usb_probe drivers/net/wireless/ath/ath9k/hif_usb.c Freed by ...: ath9k_hif_usb_disconnect -> kfree drivers/net/wireless/ath/ath9k/hif_usb.c The fw_done barrier only makes disconnect wait for the firmware chain to *terminate*; it does not protect the outer ath9k_hif_request_firmware() frame that re-armed the request and keeps touching hif_dev afterwards. Drop the post-request dev_info(): it is the only use of hif_dev after the async request is armed, and it is purely informational (the dev_err() on the failure path runs only when request_firmware_nowait() did not arm a callback, so hif_dev is still alive there). This was first reported by syzbot as a single, non-reproduced crash that was later auto-obsoleted, and was independently rediscovered by the reFuzz fuzzer, which produced a C reproducer (USB-gadget connect/disconnect of an ath9k_htc device whose firmware download fails). The vulnerable code is unchanged and still present in v7.1-rc6, where the slab-use-after-free reproduces under KASAN once the (sub-microsecond) race window is widened.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 5.10.265, 5.15.216, 6.1.183, 6.6.148, 6.12.101, 6.18.42, 7.1.6, 7.2
Red Hat 4 advisories
- RHSA-2026:68570 Released 2026-09-17 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) kernel-64k-debug-devel-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-debug-devel-matched-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-devel-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8 +12
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) kernel-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8, kernel-64k-core-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8 +28
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9) kernel-tools-libs-devel-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8, libperf-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-64k-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-64k-core-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8 +21
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-core-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8, kernel-rt-debug-5.14.0-687.49.1.el9_8 +9
- RHSA-2026:68507 Released 2026-09-17 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) kernel-64k-debug-devel-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-debug-devel-matched-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-devel-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2 +12
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) kernel-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2, kernel-64k-core-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2 +29
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 10) kernel-tools-libs-devel-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2, libperf-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 10) kernel-rt-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-64k-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-64k-core-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2 +21
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 10) kernel-rt-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-core-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2, kernel-rt-debug-6.12.0-211.56.1.el10_2 +9
- RHSA-2026:67468 Released 2026-09-15 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel security update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 8) bpftool-4.18.0-553.163.1.el8_10, kernel-4.18.0-553.163.1.el8_10, kernel-abi-stablelists-4.18.0-553.163.1.el8_10 +19
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux CRB (v. 8) kernel-tools-libs-devel-4.18.0-553.163.1.el8_10
Show 1 more Red Hat advisories
- RHSA-2026:67469 Released 2026-09-15 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel-rt security update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux NFV (v. 8) kernel-rt-4.18.0-553.163.1.rt7.504.el8_10, kernel-rt-core-4.18.0-553.163.1.rt7.504.el8_10, kernel-rt-debug-4.18.0-553.163.1.rt7.504.el8_10 +9
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux RT (v. 8) kernel-rt-4.18.0-553.163.1.rt7.504.el8_10, kernel-rt-core-4.18.0-553.163.1.rt7.504.el8_10, kernel-rt-debug-4.18.0-553.163.1.rt7.504.el8_10 +7
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 5 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:68507 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:68570 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:68507 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:67468 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:68570 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux CRB (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:67468 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:68507 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:68570 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux NFV (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:67469 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux RT (v. 8) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:67469 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:68507 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:68570 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 10) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:68507 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 9) | Fixed | RHSA-2026:68570 |
Not affected: 2 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-68363
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-x3fw-jwr8-ppm9
- 2026-10-30 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-11-06 CISA SSVC decision points changed
References
Other 8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/47ed81aaa7f94d9808f4719e78a760c2ec1e6c86
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/48de0c6952192b0771fca468df4364d11ec74ad9
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/063497cc9f320ab71a7a937c3bc0a23e630aefe2
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7f184ca38a90889f3f6665ff96748b95da39dbee
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/10b0ce629123a3737b4eda50188f73bb7be7b68b
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/48a69cedde7388294e4ea6fd804156cd62bc04fc
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7c9046d92c4b9789c9d9d775e4fd5f34be64cb0a
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/dad9f96945d77ecd4708f730c06ef54dcd8cc057
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Sources
- CVE-2026-68363 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-68363 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-x3fw-jwr8-ppm9 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-68363 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences