Linux kernel mac80211 mishandles empty FILS association request
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: 5 without a fix
No CVSS vector from any source. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
The Linux kernel mac80211 Wi-Fi stack, from 4.10 before the fixed releases, mishandles a (Re)Association Request whose last element is the FILS Session element. The function fils_encrypt_assoc_req() runs AES-SIV encryption on an empty plaintext, and the zero-size allocation puts an invalid page into a scatterlist. With CONFIG_DEBUG_SG this triggers a kernel BUG, and without it the invalid page is passed to the crypto backend.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-10-30
Description from the CNA
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: mac80211: handle empty FILS association request payload fils_encrypt_assoc_req() accepts a (Re)Association Request frame whose last element is the FILS Session element. crypt_len is then zero and aes_siv_encrypt() is called with an empty plaintext. kmemdup() returns ZERO_SIZE_PTR for a zero-length allocation, so the unconditional sg_init_one() puts an invalid page into the scatterlist. With CONFIG_DEBUG_SG this triggers a kernel BUG in sg_set_buf(); without the debug check the bogus page is handed to the crypto backend. AES-SIV is defined for empty plaintext and the S2V result is then the complete output, so handle this case before the CTR step, which has nothing to encrypt.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | 4.10 and later | 5.10.273, 5.15.224, 6.1.191, 6.6.160, 6.12.113, 6.18.56, 7.2.10, 7.3 | Patch available | CNA |
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 4.10 and later Fixed in 5.10.273, 5.15.224, 6.1.191, 6.6.160, 6.12.113, 6.18.56, 7.2.10, 7.3 Patch available CNA
Remediation
Fixed Linux kernel versions are 5.10.273, 5.15.224, 6.1.191, 6.6.160, 6.12.113, 6.18.56, 7.2.10 and 7.3. Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8, 9 and 10 and OpenShift Container Platform 4 and 5 are affected without a fix, and Red Hat's plan is none available.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-10-30
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 5.10.273, 5.15.224, 6.1.191, 6.6.160, 6.12.113, 6.18.56, 7.2.10, 7.3
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. 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 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 |
Not affected: 2 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
Timeline
- 2026-10-18 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-98698
- 2026-10-18 Alias added: GHSA-873v-4wm2-m9cr
- 2026-10-19 Fix available: Linux/[email protected] · CNA
- 2026-10-21 Fix available: Linux/Linux@0b1e4a7eeb6a301ee33bd318982927cbdbae9f36, Linux/[email protected] · CNA
- 2026-10-21 1 new reference · CNA
- 2026-10-23 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-23 CVSS score added · Red Hat
- 2026-10-30 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-10-30 Fix available: Linux/[email protected], Linux/[email protected], Linux/[email protected] +3 · CNA
- 2026-10-30 3 new references · CNA
References
Other 8
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/de3297c8e521c0b0ddc89ece6fee84e25da9ecf0
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ce70c87252a14020cb40032efe208efc6e61b1ee
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d8c5dbbf584a1baaa008988ac64dd4495f7086bd
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0b1e4a7eeb6a301ee33bd318982927cbdbae9f36
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2f5b62f6534d336a62fdb9e88b186dd70b4323ef
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/452f1c9b76f7a122bbc4630b9691bda4809677c4
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/20f939b0c151d1d28e6b62a76b2454fa6fe877f2
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/5bfd4b0b40b79781d900cb2f7da0685070f53c67
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Sources
- CVE-2026-98698 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-98698 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-873v-4wm2-m9cr · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-98698 · 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