Bug 2513177 (CVE-2026-68402)

Summary: CVE-2026-68402 kernel: Linux kernel: Wi-Fi subsystem out-of-bounds read via crafted frames
Product: [Other] Security Response Reporter: OSIDB Bzimport <bzimport>
Component: vulnerabilityAssignee: Product Security <prodsec-ir-bot>
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Priority: medium    
Version: unspecifiedCC: rhel-process-autobot, watson-tool-maintainers
Target Milestone: ---Keywords: Security
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Hardware: All   
OS: Linux   
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A flaw was found in the Linux kernel's Wi-Fi subsystem (cfg80211). The `cfg80211_is_element_inherited()` function does not properly validate the length of extension elements. A remote attacker, by sending a specially crafted Wi-Fi frame from an Access Point (AP), could trigger a one-octet slab-out-of-bounds read during element parsing. This could lead to information disclosure or potentially other impacts.
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Description OSIDB Bzimport 2026-08-10 12:23:24 UTC 
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

wifi: cfg80211: bound element ID read when checking non-inheritance

cfg80211_is_element_inherited() reads the first data octet of the
candidate element (id = elem->data[0]) to look it up in an extension
non-inheritance list. It does so after testing elem->id, but without
verifying that the element actually has a data octet. A zero-length
extension element (WLAN_EID_EXTENSION with length 0) therefore makes it
read one octet past the end of the element.

_ieee802_11_parse_elems_full() runs this check for every element of a
frame once a non-inheritance context exists -- e.g. while parsing a
per-STA profile of a Multi-Link element in a (re)association response,
or a non-transmitted BSS profile -- so a crafted frame from an AP can
trigger a one-octet slab-out-of-bounds read during element parsing:

  BUG: KASAN: slab-out-of-bounds in cfg80211_is_element_inherited
  Read of size 1 ... in net/wireless/scan.c

Return early (treat the element as inherited) when an extension element
carries no data, mirroring the existing handling of empty ID lists.

The bug was found by fuzzing ieee802_11_parse_elems_full() under KASAN.