VulnerabilityPublished 18 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-98731: Linux kernel · Bluetooth: btintel_pcie: fix plen overflow in btintel_pcie_recv_frame()

Affects Linux kernelSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · fixed in c3b5e6da4ba6485bffda9753d8339c28855207aa : update Linux kernel when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 14:05 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 c3b5e6da4ba6485bffda9753d8339c28855207aa, c3a3842c109ac130c6db3aa0014cc8cd344928ad, b2cb5ea1dc8cf829816370fc1399e6a1d2d1bca9 +1

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 Linux kernel to c3b5e6da4ba6485bffda9753d8339c28855207aa, c3a3842c109ac130c6db3aa0014cc8cd344928ad, b2cb5ea1dc8cf829816370fc1399e6a1d2d1bca9 or 7dbeb6935ac331b0cba6c41cabd8e9d02d5f64ea.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ c2b636b3f788d10486a6691ad6dd3ec4c93bd78e, < c3b5e6da4ba6485bffda9753d8339c28855207aa	Fixed in c3b5e6da4ba6485bffda9753d8339c28855207aa
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ c2b636b3f788d10486a6691ad6dd3ec4c93bd78e, < c3a3842c109ac130c6db3aa0014cc8cd344928ad	Fixed in c3a3842c109ac130c6db3aa0014cc8cd344928ad
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ c2b636b3f788d10486a6691ad6dd3ec4c93bd78e, < b2cb5ea1dc8cf829816370fc1399e6a1d2d1bca9	Fixed in b2cb5ea1dc8cf829816370fc1399e6a1d2d1bca9
LinuxLinux	Affected ≥ c2b636b3f788d10486a6691ad6dd3ec4c93bd78e, < 7dbeb6935ac331b0cba6c41cabd8e9d02d5f64ea	Fixed in 7dbeb6935ac331b0cba6c41cabd8e9d02d5f64ea
LinuxLinux	Affected =6.10	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

The vulnerability has been fixed in the Linux kernel. Users should update to a fixed kernel version containing the patches identified by the commit hashes provided. No additional mitigation is required beyond applying the official fix.

Description

A vulnerability in the Linux kernel Bluetooth subsystem (btintel_pcie) was fixed to address a plen overflow in the btintel_pcie_recv_frame() function. The issue involved a 16-bit plen value that could wrap around when adding header size and data length, allowing packet truncation checks to be bypassed. The fix involved widening plen to 32 bits to prevent overflow.

Impact

The vulnerability could allow malformed Bluetooth packets to bypass length checks, potentially leading to improper packet truncation. This could affect the stability or security of the Bluetooth subsystem in the Linux kernel. No known exploits in the wild have been reported.

Summary

CVE-2026-98731 describes a vulnerability in the Linux kernel's Bluetooth btintel_pcie driver where the plen variable, a 16-bit unsigned integer, is computed as the sum of HDR_SIZE and dlen (data length). Since dlen is a 16-bit field, values equal to or greater than 0xFFFC cause the sum to wrap around, bypassing the skb->len < plen check. This allows skb_trim() to truncate packets improperly. The vulnerability was resolved by changing plen to a 32-bit unsigned integer to prevent overflow and ensure proper length validation.

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 26 Oct 2026, 09:58 UTC

Technical details

References

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