VulnerabilityPublished 18 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-98461: Linux kernel · Bluetooth: hci_sock: validate event length before filtering

Affects Linux kernelSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · fixed in f894f6292d5122cd62d30600736b4a0ae79f7770 : update Linux kernel when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 12:55 UTC

Severity

Medium

Rated Medium by Threat Radar's AI analysis · CVSS not yet scored by NVD

EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 11% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in f894f6292d5122cd62d30600736b4a0ae79f7770, ebdd49cec380731844ed9df4092a29a014623df4, dca25c204f71be0556a15177dbe037237ac43e5e +5

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 18 Oct 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Upgrade to a fixed release listed under Affected software.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2, < f894f6292d5122cd62d30600736b4a0ae79f7770	Fixed in f894f6292d5122cd62d30600736b4a0ae79f7770
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2, < ebdd49cec380731844ed9df4092a29a014623df4	Fixed in ebdd49cec380731844ed9df4092a29a014623df4
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2, < dca25c204f71be0556a15177dbe037237ac43e5e	Fixed in dca25c204f71be0556a15177dbe037237ac43e5e
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2, < b0a6cf99afd57a39598b1beca0e86ef5004980de	Fixed in b0a6cf99afd57a39598b1beca0e86ef5004980de
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2, < 3976bbcd43b9b94c53ac9b0fd28888011588f4cc	Fixed in 3976bbcd43b9b94c53ac9b0fd28888011588f4cc
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2, < 2501a3b7b7144d1d11939b355a48ed01f83d0c62	Fixed in 2501a3b7b7144d1d11939b355a48ed01f83d0c62

AI-suggested

A fix for this vulnerability has been implemented in the Linux kernel as indicated by multiple fixed commit versions. Users and administrators should update to a Linux kernel version that includes these fixes to mitigate the issue. No additional mitigation steps are specified or required beyond applying the official patch.

Description

A vulnerability in the Linux kernel Bluetooth subsystem (hci_sock) allows out-of-bounds reads due to improper validation of event lengths before filtering. Specifically, the function is_filtered_packet() reads event data without confirming the event buffer is sufficiently long, which can lead to accessing invalid memory when processing malformed Bluetooth events. This flaw was fixed by adding proper length checks and correcting event code handling.

Impact

This vulnerability can cause out-of-bounds memory reads in the kernel Bluetooth stack when processing malformed Bluetooth events. Such memory access errors can lead to kernel instability or crashes, potentially impacting system reliability. There is no indication of code execution or privilege escalation from the provided data.

Summary

CVE-2026-98461 describes a flaw in the Linux kernel's Bluetooth hci_sock component where event length validation was missing before filtering events. The function is_filtered_packet() reads the event code and command opcode from skb->data without verifying the buffer length, allowing a malformed event from a Bluetooth controller or vhci device to cause an out-of-bounds read. The patch ensures that command events are rejected if too short and corrects event code masking logic to prevent misclassification of events, thus preventing invalid memory access.

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 26 Oct 2026, 11:06 UTC

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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