Firmware flush hang via incomplete mailbox teardown
Published Oct 18, 2026 · Updated Oct 18, 2026
A mailbox flush hang in the Linux fbnic driver allows attackers to stall firmware teardown via unspecified vectors. The fbnic_mbx_reset_desc_ring() function clears BME and sets AW_FLUSH without AW_FLUSH_MODE, leaving pending writes stuck in the PUL pipeline. The condition requires affected fbnic hardware during mailbox Rx ring teardown; attacker privileges and a trigger are not documented, and the reported effect is a noncompleting firmware flush, not a system crash.
Summary
What happened
A mailbox flush hang in the Linux fbnic driver allows attackers to stall firmware teardown via unspecified vectors. The fbnic_mbx_reset_desc_ring() function clears BME and sets AW_FLUSH without AW_FLUSH_MODE, leaving pending writes stuck in the PUL pipeline. The condition requires affected fbnic hardware during mailbox Rx ring teardown; attacker privileges and a trigger are not documented, and the reported effect is a noncompleting firmware flush, not a system crash.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-98615
- Published
- Oct 18, 2026
- Updated
- Oct 18, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- Unavailable
- Attack vector
- Unavailable
- Privileges
- Unavailable
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Oct 18, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- 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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- Affected versionversion=0a4aa8a32ddb96f320173a2e9b0e41f4a6d3746c
- Affected versionversion=3b12f00ddd08e888273b2ac0488d396d90a836fc <8947f13e436a4ff5eed9f8f019b2865a07af4bb2
- Affected versionversion=3b12f00ddd08e888273b2ac0488d396d90a836fc <8a052cd4b2caee1f90cf0e3874377066939c90e7
- Affected versionversion=3b12f00ddd08e888273b2ac0488d396d90a836fc <a969db6548a1b046cd1423701f5f9c3f5794e90d
- Affected versionversion=6.12.29 <6.12.112
- Affected versionversion=6.14.7 <6.15
- Affected versionversion=6.15
- Affected versionversion=fea860a2a6136658708fb530a82d59d29f708b74 <ed4163f6ba9b52bfd6216d5215ee7b8eb5072411
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
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Public exploit references
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Technologies
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