CVE-2026-98493Public exploitHinoki check available

Boot-time panic via unchecked DHCP option construction

Published Oct 18, 2026 · Updated Oct 18, 2026

Buffer overflow in Linux ipconfig allows attackers controlling boot parameters to cause a kernel panic during DHCP initialization. The ic_dhcp_init_options() function copies hostname and vendor-class values into the 312-byte bootp_pkt.exten[] buffer without checking their combined size. Triggering requires control of the kernel command line and DHCP autoconfiguration; CONFIG_FORTIFY_SOURCE reports the overflow, and panic_on_warn=1 turns the warning into a boot-aborting panic.

CVSS severityUnavailable
Unscored
EPSS probability0.20%
Next 30 days · Oct 19, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkAvailable
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Summary

What happened

Buffer overflow in Linux ipconfig allows attackers controlling boot parameters to cause a kernel panic during DHCP initialization. The ic_dhcp_init_options() function copies hostname and vendor-class values into the 312-byte bootp_pkt.exten[] buffer without checking their combined size. Triggering requires control of the kernel command line and DHCP autoconfiguration; CONFIG_FORTIFY_SOURCE reports the overflow, and panic_on_warn=1 turns the warning into a boot-aborting panic.

The record

CVE
CVE-2026-98493
Published
Oct 18, 2026
Updated
Oct 18, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
T1499.004
Attack vector
local
Privileges
admin

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Oct 18, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Oct 18, 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?

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  1. Affected versionversion=130c0f47fdf9c533deb1136cad5136f6cb7020f0 <24e79508b237dd2a69bc6fb6ac5cf7f126178307
  2. Affected versionversion=130c0f47fdf9c533deb1136cad5136f6cb7020f0 <abcba6f080c63e403037ecdffde43170d242376a
  3. Affected versionversion=130c0f47fdf9c533deb1136cad5136f6cb7020f0 <cbaad2922bd5d4d303055ae9afecc8999e6b40c9
  4. Affected versionversion=130c0f47fdf9c533deb1136cad5136f6cb7020f0 <e47a1958e12abc3a17b5231a4f21c8f1bf662e08
  5. Affected versionversion=2.6.36

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesadmin

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=130c0f47fdf9c533deb1136cad5136f6cb7020f0 <24e79508b237dd2a69bc6fb6ac5cf7f126178307; version=130c0f47fdf9c533deb1136cad5136f6cb7020f0 <abcba6f080c63e403037ecdffde43170d242376a; version=130c0f47fdf9c533deb1136cad5136f6cb7020f0 <cbaad2922bd5d4d303055ae9afecc8999e6b40c9; version=130c0f47fdf9c533deb1136cad5136f6cb7020f0 <e47a1958e12abc3a17b5231a4f21c8f1bf662e08; version=2.6.36

Published CVSS scores

No CVSS assessment is available in this record.

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Activity data is delayed. The latest report is Sep 28, 2026.

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No observations available

Sep 22, 2026Sep 28, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 28, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesadmin
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

T1499.004Exploitation for Service Exhaustion

Public exploit references

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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