Local denial of service via rfkill teardown race
Published Feb 14, 2026 · Updated Feb 14, 2026
Race condition in the Linux kernel NFC NCI subsystem allows local users to interrupt kernel availability through rfkill teardown. nci_unregister_device() destroys cmd_wq before unregistering the NFC device's rfkill interface, allowing nci_close_device() to access the destroyed workqueue. A low-privileged local process must race rfkill access against virtual NCI device closure; the published report observed a lockdep warning without a reproducer.
Summary
What happened
Race condition in the Linux kernel NFC NCI subsystem allows local users to interrupt kernel availability through rfkill teardown. nci_unregister_device() destroys cmd_wq before unregistering the NFC device's rfkill interface, allowing nci_close_device() to access the destroyed workqueue. A low-privileged local process must race rfkill access against virtual NCI device closure; the published report observed a lockdep warning without a reproducer.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-23167
- Published
- Feb 14, 2026
- Updated
- Feb 14, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux Kernel
- Classifications
- CWE-362, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Feb 14, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Feb 14, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=3.2
- Affected versionversion=6a2968aaf50c7a22fced77a5e24aa636281efca8 <126cd30cad37bc7c2c85fe2df2a522d4edf0a5c5
- Affected versionversion=6a2968aaf50c7a22fced77a5e24aa636281efca8 <546eba0b10989de9ccc7fd619e874a30561e2b88
- Affected versionversion=6a2968aaf50c7a22fced77a5e24aa636281efca8 <8ea4d96419fb20f15a52ce657d49f1e7c91eb7ac
- Affected versionversion=6a2968aaf50c7a22fced77a5e24aa636281efca8 <c3369fc5e6120a72169e71acd72e987907a682af
- Affected versionversion=6a2968aaf50c7a22fced77a5e24aa636281efca8 <cd4412d5905ee580e96c48360dc98fcd9e6f3208
- Affected versionversion=6a2968aaf50c7a22fced77a5e24aa636281efca8 <d2492688bb9fed6ab6e313682c387ae71a66ebae
- Affected versionversion=6a2968aaf50c7a22fced77a5e24aa636281efca8 <eaa5da5130deda26420273d4610cf6e4f794ed75
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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