WARN in mac80211 set_bitrate_mask when interface is not in driver
Key facts
- Attack vector
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- Privileges required
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- User interaction
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- Attack complexity
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- Impact type
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- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
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- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 7 without a fix
No CVSS vector from any source. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
The mac80211 wireless stack in the Linux kernel from 3.5 is affected. The set_bitrate_mask path checks that an interface is running but not that it is present in the driver, so the kernel hits a WARN in the driver call. The warning can be triggered through the wireless extensions SIOCSIWRATE ioctl, and the sources report no exploitation.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-07
Description from the CNA
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: mac80211: avoid WARN in set_bitrate_mask when sdata not in driver ieee80211_set_bitrate_mask() checks if the interface is running via ieee80211_sdata_running(), but it does not check if the interface is still present in the driver. When sdata is running but IEEE80211_SDATA_IN_DRIVER is not set, the call reaches drv_set_bitrate_mask() in driver-ops.h which hits wlan1: Failed check-sdata-in-driver check, flags: 0x0 WARNING: net/mac80211/driver-ops.h:884 at drv_set_bitrate_mask Syzkaller triggers this via wext SIOCSIWRATE ioctl. The Call Trace shows wext_ioctl_dispatch() in wext-core.c dispatching the ioctl, calling ioctl_standard_call() for SIOCSIWRATE, which calls cfg80211_wext_siwrate() in wext-compat.c. That builds a bitrate mask and calls rdev_set_bitrate_mask() which ends up in ieee80211_set_bitrate_mask() in cfg.c. The interface is marked running via SDATA_STATE_RUNNING but flags is 0, so check_sdata_in_driver() fails. When the interface is being torn down, or when wext ioctl is issued during interface bringup before drv_add_interface() sets IN_DRIVER, the running check passes while IN_DRIVER is clear. Check IEEE80211_SDATA_IN_DRIVER in ieee80211_set_bitrate_mask() before calling the driver, returning -ENETDOWN. This avoids the WARN_ONCE in driver-ops.h and matches other cfg.c operations that bail early when not in driver. This change should be safe because wiphy mutex is held in cfg80211_wext_siwrate() via guard(wiphy), and IN_DRIVER is set/cleared under RTNL and wiphy paths in drv_add_interface() and drv_remove_interface() in driver-ops.c, so the check is race-free against driver add/remove. Returning -ENETDOWN is the same error other not-running paths use and does not introduce new locking. [also add second syzbot report]
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.
Affected products
Remediation
Upgrade the Linux kernel to 5.10.271, 5.15.222, 6.1.189, 6.6.158, 6.12.112, 6.18.54, 7.2.8 or 7.3, depending on your branch. Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 has no fix planned, and Red Hat lists no fix available for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7, 8, 9 and 10 and for Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 and 5.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-07
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 5.10.271, 5.15.222, 6.1.189, 6.6.158, 6.12.112, 6.18.54, 7.2.8, 7.3
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Low. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 5 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
Timeline
- 2026-10-14 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-98406
- 2026-10-14 Alias added: GHSA-9hw7-47p3-c6fj
- 2026-10-16 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-16 CVSS score added · Red Hat
- 2026-10-19 Fix available: Linux/[email protected] · CNA
- 2026-11-07 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
References
Other 8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4ba86c44b2fcb1c3175caa2456b6d58f483446ab
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4095b66acae9893dd13deb39a4331651cb2f822b
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c2cd9c44777cf97be3e35c10b7c2d8f59ebb9306
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0d1700394e9f5d0bd9bebad8d5a50edf983f52fd
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7978dda63d2b109ea9c3f7a096cd1aac6542cd54
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/432c8532d5ccc2af77da43ed6ef1c80495a4efe8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c4ee5685af444024e6222ce29f6ed36adc44ffc3
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/da2ca406f45a6e21760243152ed8d2e8e72915c2
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Sources
- CVE-2026-98406 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-98406 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-9hw7-47p3-c6fj · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-98406 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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