Kernel crash via stale NAPI vector count
Published Oct 18, 2026 · Updated Oct 18, 2026
NULL-pointer dereference in the Linux 6.11 fbnic driver allows attackers to cause a kernel crash during device removal. The power-management teardown frees NAPI vectors without clearing num_napi, so a subsequent fbnic_dbg_down() call traverses absent vectors. The failure requires affected hardware and unsuccessful PCIe recovery or a failed resume-open operation followed by removal or unbinding; attacker control over those prerequisites is not established.
Summary
What happened
NULL-pointer dereference in the Linux 6.11 fbnic driver allows attackers to cause a kernel crash during device removal. The power-management teardown frees NAPI vectors without clearing num_napi, so a subsequent fbnic_dbg_down() call traverses absent vectors. The failure requires affected hardware and unsuccessful PCIe recovery or a failed resume-open operation followed by removal or unbinding; attacker control over those prerequisites is not established.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-98616
- 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?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=6.11
- Affected versionversion=bc6107771bb4be3009168cfda24d22131c026fe8 <4bcc4a92c603fe7f062cea22e20da2e0ad6b12c3
- Affected versionversion=bc6107771bb4be3009168cfda24d22131c026fe8 <4f4b767ffea7653a00904383908536e754f8ef5b
- Affected versionversion=bc6107771bb4be3009168cfda24d22131c026fe8 <c5b5aee41b9f5ed0743344be1c7b544555fa3cb9
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
No sourced classifications are available.
Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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