CVE-2026-98155

Analyzed Analyzed - Analysis Complete

Out-of-Bounds Read in Linux Kernel QAIC Accelerator Driver

Publication date: 2026-09-25

Last updated on: 2026-10-20

Assigner: kernel.org

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: accel/qaic: Address potential out-of-bounds read in resp_worker() Although 'commit 2feec5ae5df7 ("accel/qaic: Handle DBC deactivation if the owner went away")' fixes the scenario it was intended for by walking the message and only decoding QAIC_TRANS_DEACTIVATE_FROM_DEV, if present, it skipped over the bounds checking code that is included in decode_message(). This could lead to issues such as reading past the slab allocation's end, infinite loops or kernel panics. For those issues to happen, a malformed wire message is needed to be sent from the device. Instead of duplicating the bounds checking code already present in decode_message(), use the function inside resp_worker().

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Meta Information

Published

2026-09-25

Last Modified

2026-10-20

Generated

2026-11-08

AI Q&A

2026-09-25

EPSS Evaluated

2026-11-07

NVD

CVE-2026-98155

EUVD

EUVD-2026-86986

Affected Vendors & Products

Vendor	Product	Version / Range
linux	linux_kernel	7.0
linux	linux_kernel	7.0
linux	linux_kernel	7.0
linux	linux_kernel	7.0
linux	linux_kernel	7.0
linux	linux_kernel	7.0
linux	linux_kernel	7.0
linux	linux_kernel	7.0
linux	linux_kernel	From 6.12.81 (inc) to 6.12.111 (exc)
linux	linux_kernel	From 6.18.22 (inc) to 6.18.53 (exc)
linux	linux_kernel	From 6.19.12 (inc) to 6.20 (exc)
linux	linux_kernel	From 6.6.134 (inc) to 6.6.158 (exc)

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE

KEV

CWE ID	Description
CWE-125	The product reads data past the end, or before the beginning, of the intended buffer.

Attack-Flow Graph

Executive Summary

This vulnerability is in the Linux kernel's accel/qaic component. It involves a potential out-of-bounds read in the resp_worker() function. A previous fix addressed a specific scenario but missed adding bounds checking when decoding messages. This could allow reading past allocated memory, causing kernel panics or infinite loops if a malformed message is sent from a device.

Detection Guidance

This vulnerability requires a malformed wire message from a device to trigger. Detection would involve monitoring for kernel panics, infinite loops, or out-of-bounds read errors in the accel/qaic subsystem. Check kernel logs for QAIC-related errors or crashes.

Impact Analysis

If exploited, this vulnerability could lead to system instability such as crashes or hangs. An attacker with access to send malformed messages to the device could trigger kernel panics or infinite loops, potentially causing denial-of-service conditions on affected systems.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability does not directly affect compliance with GDPR or HIPAA as it is a low-level kernel issue involving potential out-of-bounds reads in the Linux kernel's accel/qaic module. Compliance impacts would only occur if exploitation led to unauthorized data access or system instability, which is not specified in the provided context.

Mitigation Strategies

Apply the Linux kernel patch that resolves this issue. Update to a kernel version containing commit 2feec5ae5df7 or later. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict access to the QAIC device to trusted sources to prevent malformed messages.

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