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TI-2026-73954 Aliases CVE-2026-98423GHSA-gc6m-v2g5-2jw7

wifi: mac80211_hwsim: don't hand frames to mac80211 while stopping

Priority LOW 22Published · Updated

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
Fixed

No CVSS vector from any source. Fix status from CNA.

Summary

The mac80211_hwsim driver in the Linux kernel checked the started flag before passing frames from wmediumd to mac80211, but the radio could be stopped between that check and delivery. This let mac80211 hit WARN_ON(!local->started). The fix holds the mutex across that path and synchronises it with radio stop. Red Hat rates CVE-2026-98423 Moderate, and CISA has not added it to KEV.

Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-06

Description from the CNA

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: mac80211_hwsim: don't hand frames to mac80211 while stopping The code checks ->started for frames coming from wmediumd, but the radio can be stopped after the check and before frame delivery, causing mac80211 to hit the WARN_ON(!local->started). Expand the mutex for this case and synchronise against it when the radio is stopped to avoid being able to hit the warning with hwsim. Drop the error print that would've complicated the error path, it only triggers for allocation failures (already noisy) and malformed frames anyway.

Why it matters now

EPSS 0.00215 11th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix Fixed Linux (Linux): 6.1.189, 6.6.158, 6.12.112 +3

SSVC decision points

Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.

Affected products

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed inStatusSource
LinuxLinux3.1 and later6.1.189, 6.6.158, 6.12.112, 6.18.54, 7.2.8, 7.3Patch availableCNA
  • Linux VendorLinux Affected 3.1 and later Fixed in 6.1.189, 6.6.158, 6.12.112, 6.18.54, 7.2.8, 7.3 Patch available CNA

CPE names Threatist (inferred) · 1

Inferred from how NVD named this product before; not given by a source.

CPEVersionsRoleVendor
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*——Linux
  • cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions — — ·Linux

Remediation

Update the Linux kernel to 6.1.189, 6.6.158, 6.12.112, 6.18.54, 7.2.8 or 7.3, or to a later release from the same branch.

Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-06

  • Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 6.1.189, 6.6.158, 6.12.112, 6.18.54, 7.2.8, 7.3

Vendor assessments

Red Hat

Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →

Not affected: 7 products
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
  • Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
  • Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 5

Timeline

  1. 2026-10-14 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-98423
  2. 2026-10-14 Alias added: GHSA-gc6m-v2g5-2jw7
  3. 2026-10-16 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
  4. 2026-10-16 CVSS score added · Red Hat
  5. 2026-10-19 Fix available: Linux/[email protected] · CNA
  6. 2026-11-06 Affected versions changed · Red Hat

References

  • TI-2025-26358 tls: fix handling of zero-length records on the rx_list KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
  • TI-2026-38352 netfilter: bridge: make ebt_snat ARP rewrite writable KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
  • TI-2021-02452 Incorrect authorization in Ubuntu linux kernel KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
  • TI-2013-05264 The (1) get_user and (2) put_user API functions in the Linux kernel before 3.5.5 on the… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
  • TI-2022-00125 Integer overflow in kernel KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
  • TI-2013-01864 The perf_swevent_init function in kernel/events/core.c in the Linux kernel before 3.8.9… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
See all 21741 →

Sources