Kernel crash via sign-extended bounds comparison
Published Oct 18, 2026 · Updated Oct 18, 2026
Out-of-bounds reads in Linux XSK map lookup allow local users to crash the kernel through a crafted BPF map and program. In net/xdp/xskmap.c, xsk_map_gen_lookup() generates a 64-bit comparison whose sign-extended max_entries immediate lets an invalid index bypass the array bounds check. The demonstrated trigger requires root access and enough memory for a large map; the reported consequence is a kernel panic, not demonstrated data disclosure or privilege escalation.
Summary
What happened
Out-of-bounds reads in Linux XSK map lookup allow local users to crash the kernel through a crafted BPF map and program. In net/xdp/xskmap.c, xsk_map_gen_lookup() generates a 64-bit comparison whose sign-extended max_entries immediate lets an invalid index bypass the array bounds check. The demonstrated trigger requires root access and enough memory for a large map; the reported consequence is a kernel panic, not demonstrated data disclosure or privilege escalation.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-98631
- 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
- 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=5.5
- Affected versionversion=e65650f291ee72fc578d6346080fc4699204ef2c <11d9be35c1f4233798e99be98bc474f83a254c6c
- Affected versionversion=e65650f291ee72fc578d6346080fc4699204ef2c <123f90f394ca404ab8796a7c8072ff7fa5b65a9c
- Affected versionversion=e65650f291ee72fc578d6346080fc4699204ef2c <227ec890559e922e235eb543646e3bf0bd8269b0
- Affected versionversion=e65650f291ee72fc578d6346080fc4699204ef2c <36461e58f88a1b723f86693f437ac12e60ff4363
- Affected versionversion=e65650f291ee72fc578d6346080fc4699204ef2c <3c1e0a4bc156b8d5c5772dbc76b9ea74dce5ca24
- Affected versionversion=e65650f291ee72fc578d6346080fc4699204ef2c <70504de0bb627848667207bec7ccfd647deb8814
- Affected versionversion=e65650f291ee72fc578d6346080fc4699204ef2c <b5c0cff0c5331582ab01c4c423731453a8381acc
- Affected versionversion=e65650f291ee72fc578d6346080fc4699204ef2c <c6d5c582d55a8f229d75e98d62eaa065b0deb18d
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
Public exploit references
- Upstream XSK map kernel-panic reproducerproof of concept · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
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