CVE-2026-98801
net: restrict SO_RESERVE_MEM to TCP sockets and cap max value
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: restrict SO_RESERVE_MEM to TCP sockets and cap max value Commit 2bb2f5fb21b0 ("net: add new socket option SO_RESERVE_MEM") and commit d00c8ee31729 ("net: fix possible NULL deref in sock_reserve_memory") only checked sk_has_account(sk), which is true for both TCP and UDP sockets. However, SO_RESERVE_MEM and sk_unused_reserved_mem() are currently only supported by TCP: - On UDP sockets, sk->sk_forward_alloc is protected by sk->sk_receive_queue.lock, whereas sock_reserve_memory() and sock_release_reserved_memory() only acquire lock_sock(sk). Concurrent UDP packet reception/release and setsockopt(SO_RESERVE_MEM) corrupt sk_forward_alloc and memcg accounting. - udp_rmem_release() reclaims excess sk_forward_alloc without accounting for sk_unused_reserved_mem(sk). Restrict sock_reserve_memory() to TCP sockets (sk_is_tcp(sk)) for now. Supporting SO_RESERVE_MEM for UDP (acquiring sk_receive_queue.lock and honoring sk_unused_reserved_mem() in udp_rmem_release()) can be done in a future net-next series if needed. In addition, reject val > SZ_1G with -EINVAL in sk_setsockopt(SO_RESERVE_MEM). Without an upper bound, values near INT_MAX cause sk_mem_pages(delta) and (pages << PAGE_SHIFT) to overflow 32-bit signed int, corrupting sk->sk_forward_alloc and sk->sk_reserved_mem. Using a page-aligned cap (SZ_1G) ensures that the page-rounded sk->sk_reserved_mem reported by getsockopt(SO_RESERVE_MEM) can always be passed back to setsockopt(SO_RESERVE_MEM).
INFO
Published Date :
Oct. 18, 2026, 4:17 p.m.
Last Modified :
Oct. 18, 2026, 4:17 p.m.
Remotely Exploit :
No
Source :
416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67
Solution
- Apply the provided kernel patches.
- Update the Linux kernel to a patched version.
- Ensure SO_RESERVE_MEM is only used with TCP sockets.
- Limit SO_RESERVE_MEM values to 1GB.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth
information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to
CVE-2026-98801.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-98801 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-2026-98801
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).
Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.
The following list is the news that have been mention
CVE-2026-98801 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2026-98801 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. 18, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: restrict SO_RESERVE_MEM to TCP sockets and cap max value Commit 2bb2f5fb21b0 ("net: add new socket option SO_RESERVE_MEM") and commit d00c8ee31729 ("net: fix possible NULL deref in sock_reserve_memory") only checked sk_has_account(sk), which is true for both TCP and UDP sockets. However, SO_RESERVE_MEM and sk_unused_reserved_mem() are currently only supported by TCP: - On UDP sockets, sk->sk_forward_alloc is protected by sk->sk_receive_queue.lock, whereas sock_reserve_memory() and sock_release_reserved_memory() only acquire lock_sock(sk). Concurrent UDP packet reception/release and setsockopt(SO_RESERVE_MEM) corrupt sk_forward_alloc and memcg accounting. - udp_rmem_release() reclaims excess sk_forward_alloc without accounting for sk_unused_reserved_mem(sk). Restrict sock_reserve_memory() to TCP sockets (sk_is_tcp(sk)) for now. Supporting SO_RESERVE_MEM for UDP (acquiring sk_receive_queue.lock and honoring sk_unused_reserved_mem() in udp_rmem_release()) can be done in a future net-next series if needed. In addition, reject val > SZ_1G with -EINVAL in sk_setsockopt(SO_RESERVE_MEM). Without an upper bound, values near INT_MAX cause sk_mem_pages(delta) and (pages << PAGE_SHIFT) to overflow 32-bit signed int, corrupting sk->sk_forward_alloc and sk->sk_reserved_mem. Using a page-aligned cap (SZ_1G) ensures that the page-rounded sk->sk_reserved_mem reported by getsockopt(SO_RESERVE_MEM) can always be passed back to setsockopt(SO_RESERVE_MEM). Added Affected New affected value received. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/98xxx/CVE-2026-98801.json">CVE-2026-98801</a> Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/37e02c42a00be692c06343e11779aadc45f45971 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/492e04f9a00f3cc88a1f6899417b10f3019a624e Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/5069ce898148bd799395c5a464e006cbb840f188 Added Reference https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a467b05b201b5c26be52ed3081992fa9c0387648