CVE-2026-98349
wifi: libipw: reject too-short beacon and probe responses
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: libipw: reject too-short beacon and probe responses libipw_process_probe_response() and the libipw_network_init() call it makes assume the frame contains the full 36-byte beacon and probe response prefix, but the ipw2100 and ipw2200 receive paths only establish that a management frame carries the generic 24-byte three-address header. libipw_network_init() then computes the information element length as stats->len - sizeof(*beacon) stats->len is a u16 and sizeof() has type size_t, so the subtraction is evaluated as size_t and wraps instead of going negative. Truncating that to the u16 length parameter of libipw_parse_info_param() yields 65524 for a 24-byte beacon, and the parser then walks the receive buffer as if it held almost 64 KiB of information elements, reading past the allocation. Reject the frame before any fixed field is touched. Found by an AI-assisted review of length arithmetic in management frame parsers. Verified with a KUnit case under Generic KASAN on arm64 under QEMU; I do not have the hardware, so it is not tested on a real device.
INFO
Published Date :
Oct. 6, 2026, 9:18 a.m.
Last Modified :
Oct. 6, 2026, 9:18 a.m.
Remotely Exploit :
No
Source :
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Solution
- Update the Linux kernel to the latest stable version.
- Apply the provided patch to the affected kernel.
- Ensure management frames are validated before processing.
- Review length arithmetic in frame parsing code.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
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CVE-2026-98349.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-98349 is
associated with the following CWEs:
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification
(CAPEC)
stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and
approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2026-98349
weaknesses.
We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).
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CVE-2026-98349 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2026-98349 vulnerability over time.
Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.
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New CVE Received by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Oct. 06, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: libipw: reject too-short beacon and probe responses libipw_process_probe_response() and the libipw_network_init() call it makes assume the frame contains the full 36-byte beacon and probe response prefix, but the ipw2100 and ipw2200 receive paths only establish that a management frame carries the generic 24-byte three-address header. libipw_network_init() then computes the information element length as stats->len - sizeof(*beacon) stats->len is a u16 and sizeof() has type size_t, so the subtraction is evaluated as size_t and wraps instead of going negative. Truncating that to the u16 length parameter of libipw_parse_info_param() yields 65524 for a 24-byte beacon, and the parser then walks the receive buffer as if it held almost 64 KiB of information elements, reading past the allocation. Reject the frame before any fixed field is touched. Found by an AI-assisted review of length arithmetic in management frame parsers. Verified with a KUnit case under Generic KASAN on arm64 under QEMU; I do not have the hardware, so it is not tested on a real device. Added Affected New affected value received. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/98xxx/CVE-2026-98349.json">CVE-2026-98349</a> Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/14ae269c1306053ddf1ccf37c4bd66e085a652d1 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/19959fb60228f6dccc40d55507f8b1a751c2dc89 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/23afeb5d2bdfd34c8a0a661876291a4fa9978293 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2c87bbc00dc93149d1dc4f803ad92d92e4ef3758 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/5ce5721e8cbe3e80db8f43851cc2a2a92485ef4b Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/89959ff00a978f3172726d3d5f861ee6f1aae26d Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/cee6f141b3bebe62eb0363fd147acb52023935f0 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ff756e6647722b7d225d882f7bdb186d8eee318e