VulnerabilityPublished 18 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-98619: Linux kernel · net: ethtool: keep rtnl_lock for the ioctl self test

Source GCVE Database

Authoritative record:CVE-2026-98619· Medium

Not known to be exploited : upgrade to 4ca1503491f1f25a954c13ac5775bf6775c5abc8 or 1b82958f3f035df5ccaab5430a2302f08a5d5351 when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 13:47 UTC

Severity

Medium

Rated by Threat Radar · CVSS not yet scored by NVD

EPSS: 0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 4% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 4ca1503491f1f25a954c13ac5775bf6775c5abc8, 1b82958f3f035df5ccaab5430a2302f08a5d5351

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.

ghsa-j42x-6wfg-qvw7

What to do

Upgrade Linux kernel to 4ca1503491f1f25a954c13ac5775bf6775c5abc8 or 1b82958f3f035df5ccaab5430a2302f08a5d5351.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ f994752b11273ded7ec6b49ae5c1d319eef21743, < 4ca1503491f1f25a954c13ac5775bf6775c5abc8	Fixed in 4ca1503491f1f25a954c13ac5775bf6775c5abc8
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ f994752b11273ded7ec6b49ae5c1d319eef21743, < 1b82958f3f035df5ccaab5430a2302f08a5d5351	Fixed in 1b82958f3f035df5ccaab5430a2302f08a5d5351
LinuxLinux	Affected =7.2	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

A fix has been implemented in the Linux kernel to add an opt-in bit for drivers requiring rtnl_lock during the ethtool self test and to set this bit for affected ops-locked drivers. Users should update to a Linux kernel version that includes this fix. No additional mitigation is required beyond applying the official patch.

Description

A vulnerability in the Linux kernel's ethtool ioctl self test was resolved. The issue involved the offline self test tearing the network interface down and back up without holding the required rtnl_lock, which is necessary for safe device reconfiguration. This could lead to warnings or assertion failures during the self test on ops-locked drivers such as fbnic and bnxt. The fix adds an opt-in bit for drivers needing rtnl_lock during the self test to ensure proper locking.

References

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