VulnerabilityPublished 18 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-98704: Linux kernel · wifi: mac80211: keep fallback association elements alive

Source GCVE Database

Authoritative record:CVE-2026-98704

Not known to be exploited · fixed in de77b0f68142147e74fac1c497dbe1f93daeeed9 : update Linux kernel 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 5% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in de77b0f68142147e74fac1c497dbe1f93daeeed9, d0183cd1f6a2dba9e63be20af2f65093c9c8d121, a10a2f80476d166fd81c361ec0319493671b694e +2

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-vrf9-cxgg-qw6c

What to do

Upgrade to a fixed release listed under Affected software.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 5023b14cf4df4d22e1a80738167f3438c9e62e5f, < de77b0f68142147e74fac1c497dbe1f93daeeed9	Fixed in de77b0f68142147e74fac1c497dbe1f93daeeed9
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 5023b14cf4df4d22e1a80738167f3438c9e62e5f, < d0183cd1f6a2dba9e63be20af2f65093c9c8d121	Fixed in d0183cd1f6a2dba9e63be20af2f65093c9c8d121
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 5023b14cf4df4d22e1a80738167f3438c9e62e5f, < a10a2f80476d166fd81c361ec0319493671b694e	Fixed in a10a2f80476d166fd81c361ec0319493671b694e
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 5023b14cf4df4d22e1a80738167f3438c9e62e5f, < 0878594c5806dd29fa5e16cc026ce19158afdad2	Fixed in 0878594c5806dd29fa5e16cc026ce19158afdad2
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ 5023b14cf4df4d22e1a80738167f3438c9e62e5f, < 1d9644753d46c86b4e5c05bd6d9d35339ea27331	Fixed in 1d9644753d46c86b4e5c05bd6d9d35339ea27331
LinuxLinux	Affected =5.2	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

A fix has been implemented that keeps the fallback parse result alive until association setup completes, preventing use-after-free. Users should apply the official Linux kernel update that includes this patch once available.

Description

A use-after-free vulnerability in the Linux kernel's mac80211 WiFi subsystem was resolved. The flaw occurs when associating to a non-transmitted MBSSID profile, causing the code to read freed memory while processing fallback association elements. This happens because pointers to fallback parsed information are used after the parse object has been freed. The fix ensures the fallback parse result remains valid until association setup completes.

Impact

This vulnerability could lead to undefined behavior such as kernel crashes or potential memory corruption due to use-after-free conditions during WiFi association. No specific exploit or active attacks are reported. The impact is limited to affected Linux kernel WiFi functionality during association with certain MBSSID profiles.

Summary

The vulnerability in the Linux kernel's mac80211 component involves use-after-free memory access during WiFi association with a non-transmitted MBSSID profile. Specifically, when an association response omits WMM, HT, or VHT information, the ieee80211_assoc_config_link() function uses cached BSS information elements (IEs) from a fallback parse. For non-transmitted MBSSID profiles, these pointers refer to memory owned by the parse object, which is freed before the pointers are used, leading to use-after-free. The patch keeps the fallback parse result alive until the association setup finishes, preventing access to freed memory.

References

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