Skip to content
Heist/ feed
Back to feed
HighFix available

wifi: mac80211: tear down new links on vif update error path

Type: advisorySources: OSV

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: mac80211: tear down new links on vif update error path When ieee80211_vif_update_links() adds new links it allocates a link container for each and calls ieee80211_link_init() (which registers the per-link debugfs files with file->private_data pointing into the container) and ieee80211_link_setup(). If the subsequent drv_change_vif_links() fails, the error path restores the old pointers and jumps to 'free', which frees the new containers but never removes their debugfs entries or stops the links. The debugfs files survive with file->private_data dangling at the freed container, so a later open()+read() (e.g. link-1/txpower) dereferences freed memory in ieee80211_if_read_link(), a use-after-free. The removal path already dismantles links correctly via ieee80211_tear_down_links(), which removes each link's keys and debugfs entries and calls ieee80211_link_stop(); the add path on the error branch does not. Commit be1ba9ed221f ("wifi: mac80211: avoid weird state in error path") hardened this same error path for the link-removal case (new_links == 0) but left the newly-added links' teardown unaddressed. drv_change_vif_links() can fail at runtime on MLO drivers (internal allocation / queue / firmware command failures). Remove the new links' debugfs entries and stop them before freeing. BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in ieee80211_if_read_link (net/mac80211/debugfs_netdev.c:127) Read of size 8 at addr ffff88801

Products
Kernel
Affected versions
Not specified
Fixed versions
6.12.101, 6.18.42, 6.6.148, 7.1.6
CVEs
CVE-2026-64574
Confirmed fixed CVEs
Not specified
Updated in this feed
7 Nov 2026, 00:34 UTC · Revision 1

Source evidence

wifi: mac80211: tear down new links on vif update error path

core-osv · Original source

Published 5 Aug 2026, 08:08 UTC

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: mac80211: tear down new links on vif update error path When ieee80211_vif_update_links() adds new links it allocates a link container for each and calls ieee80211_link_init() (which registers the per-link debugfs files with file->private_data pointing into the container) and ieee80211_link_setup(). If the subsequent drv_change_vif_links() fails, the error path restores the old pointers and jumps to 'free', which frees the new containers but never removes their debugfs entries or stops the links. The debugfs files survive with file->private_data dangling at the freed container, so a later open()+read() (e.g. link-1/txpower) dereferences freed memory in ieee80211_if_read_link(), a use-after-free. The removal path already dismantles links correctly via ieee80211_tear_down_links(), which removes each link's keys and debugfs entries and calls ieee80211_link_stop(); the add path on the error branch does not. Commit be1ba9ed221f ("wifi: mac80211: avoid weird state in error path") hardened this same error path for the link-removal case (new_links == 0) but left the newly-added links' teardown unaddressed. drv_change_vif_links() can fail at runtime on MLO drivers (internal allocation / queue / firmware command failures). Remove the new links' debugfs entries and stop them before freeing. BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in ieee80211_if_read_link (net/mac80211/debugfs_netdev.c:127) Read of size 8 at addr ffff88801

osv:CVE-2026-64574

Kernel

Fixed versions: 6.6.148, 6.12.101, 6.18.42, 7.1.6

Complete source record
{
  "id": "a4a6cba3e0d6ce03592fd57f9d2d1207865dce7ca8fcbf17d0ba8d13bcef45f0",
  "url": "https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-64574",
  "method": "structured",
  "payload": {
    "kind": "advisory",
    "title": "wifi: mac80211: tear down new links on vif update error path",
    "summary": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: mac80211: tear down new links on vif update error path When ieee80211_vif_update_links() adds new links it allocates a link container for each and calls ieee80211_link_init() (which registers the per-link debugfs files with file->private_data pointing into the container) and ieee80211_link_setup(). If the subsequent drv_change_vif_links() fails, the error path restores the old pointers and jumps to 'free', which frees the new containers but never removes their debugfs entries or stops the links. The debugfs files survive with file->private_data dangling at the freed container, so a later open()+read() (e.g. link-1/txpower) dereferences freed memory in ieee80211_if_read_link(), a use-after-free. The removal path already dismantles links correctly via ieee80211_tear_down_links(), which removes each link's keys and debugfs entries and calls ieee80211_link_stop(); the add path on the error branch does not. Commit be1ba9ed221f (\"wifi: mac80211: avoid weird state in error path\") hardened this same error path for the link-removal case (new_links == 0) but left the newly-added links' teardown unaddressed. drv_change_vif_links() can fail at runtime on MLO drivers (internal allocation / queue / firmware command failures). Remove the new links' debugfs entries and stop them before freeing. BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in ieee80211_if_read_link (net/mac80211/debugfs_netdev.c:127) Read of size 8 at addr ffff88801",
    "evidence": "osv:CVE-2026-64574",
    "products": [
      {
        "name": {
          "value": "Kernel",
          "evidence": "/affected/1/package/name"
        },
        "prerequisites": [],
        "fixed_versions": [
          {
            "value": "6.6.148",
            "evidence": "/affected/1/ranges"
          },
          {
            "value": "6.12.101",
            "evidence": "/affected/1/ranges"
          },
          {
            "value": "6.18.42",
            "evidence": "/affected/1/ranges"
          },
          {
            "value": "7.1.6",
            "evidence": "/affected/1/ranges"
          }
        ],
        "affected_versions": []
      }
    ],
    "severity": "high",
    "structured": {
      "id": "CVE-2026-64574",
      "aliases": [
        "CVE-2026-64574"
      ],
      "metrics": [
        {
          "type": "CVSS_V3",
          "score": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
        }
      ],
      "affected": [
        {
          "ranges": [
            {
              "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
              "type": "GIT",
              "events": [
                {
                  "introduced": "170cd6a66d9a164180eb4dc72d50afa6ce1ce566"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "329589417214d3b7221432e5b266ed2bba7ff674"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "c57d97f381306bbfba174e8f708419e007824e0c"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "0f7eaeb950adb77f71beb546e5ab30f90b41fe6f"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "901a73523e093beff123b54b1ceaf3113f18acc9"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "952c02b33f56207a160421bcd61e7ac53c9c59ae"
                }
              ]
            }
          ],
          "database_specific": {
            "source": "https://storage.googleapis.com/cve-osv-conversion/osv-output/CVE-2026-64574.json"
          }
        },
        {
          "ranges": [
            {
              "type": "ECOSYSTEM",
              "events": [
                {
                  "introduced": "6.4.0"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "6.6.148"
                }
              ]
            },
            {
              "type": "ECOSYSTEM",
              "events": [
                {
                  "introduced": "6.7.0"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "6.12.101"
                }
              ]
            },
            {
              "type": "ECOSYSTEM",
              "events": [
                {
                  "introduced": "6.13.0"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "6.18.42"
                }
              ]
            },
            {
              "type": "ECOSYSTEM",
              "events": [
                {
                  "introduced": "6.19.0"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "7.1.6"
                }
              ]
            }
          ],
          "package": {
            "name": "Kernel",
            "ecosystem": "Linux"
          },
          "database_specific": {
            "source": "https://storage.googleapis.com/cve-osv-conversion/osv-output/CVE-2026-64574.json"
          }
        }
      ],
      "modified": "2026-10-28T02:30:48.294359798Z",
      "provider": "osv",
      "references": [
        "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0f7eaeb950adb77f71beb546e5ab30f90b41fe6f",
        "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/329589417214d3b7221432e5b266ed2bba7ff674",
        "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/901a73523e093beff123b54b1ceaf3113f18acc9",
        "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/952c02b33f56207a160421bcd61e7ac53c9c59ae",
        "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c57d97f381306bbfba174e8f708419e007824e0c",
        "https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2026/64xxx/CVE-2026-64574.json",
        "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-64574",
        "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git"
      ],
      "provider_metadata": {
        "cna_assigner": "Linux",
        "osv_generated_from": "https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2026/64xxx/CVE-2026-64574.json"
      }
    },
    "related_cves": [
      {
        "value": "CVE-2026-64574",
        "evidence": "/id"
      }
    ],
    "security_relevant": true,
    "severity_evidence": "/severity/0/score"
  },
  "source_id": "core-osv",
  "document_id": 516657,
  "published_at": "2026-08-05T08:08:10.272+00:00"
}