Vulnerability in Linux kernel (CVE-2026-98496)
Summary
Vulnerability in Linux kernel (CVE-2026-98496). Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure.
Original description
The description as published by the source.
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
net: airoha: npu: cancel wdt_work after releasing the WDT IRQ
airoha_npu_remove() calls cancel_work_sync() on each core's wdt_work,
but the watchdog IRQ that queues it is requested with devm_request_irq()
and is freed only after .remove() returns. airoha_npu_wdt_handler() can
therefore schedule_work() again once the cancel has returned. struct
airoha_npu, which contains the work, is devm_kzalloc()'d and is freed in
that same unwind, so the late work dereferences freed memory.
Register the work with devm_work_autocancel() before devm_request_irq()
and drop .remove(). Devres runs in reverse order, so the IRQ is freed
before cancel_work_sync(), including when probe fails. A cancel left in
.remove() cannot get that order. Initializing the work first also stops
a pending watchdog interrupt from queuing an uninitialized work item.
Probe currently calls INIT_WORK() only after devm_request_irq().
This issue was identified during our ongoing static-analysis research
while reviewing kernel code.
Source: NIST National Vulnerability Database NVD GitHub Advisory
Auto-generated summary
Assembled by SecPulse from the source data (CVSS, CWE, affected versions) using templates — no AI involved. Check the original description and references below for exact details.
A vulnerability tracked as CVE-2026-98496 has been found in Linux kernel.
Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure.
What to do: apply the vendor's official patched release.
If unsure, ask your IT team or search "Linux kernel CVE-2026-98496" on the vendor's site.
CVE-2026-98496 (Linux kernel)
Plan: 1) Audit SBOM/dependencies, 2) Stage→prod upgrade, 3) Add WAF/proxy monitoring on affected endpoints, 4) Hunt IOCs in logs.
Refs: see the GHSA / vendor advisory / patched release linked on this page.
A vulnerability (unclassified) exists in Linux kernel.
Check the vendor advisory for the affected versions of Linux kernel.
Severity: ?. Risk of unauthorized operations or information disclosure.
Update to the patched release per vendor advisory.
Until the patch is applied: disable the affected feature, apply WAF rules, or restrict access via network ACLs.
Search webserver/proxy logs for unusual request patterns matching this CVE's known IOCs. Audit SBOM/dependencies to find affected services.
Response actions
Concrete steps and command examples for SOC/SRE teams to execute in order
-
1Identify exposure identify
Audit SBOM/dependencies for affected components.資産台帳・SBOM・依存マニフェストで Linux kernel を使っているサービスとバージョンを洗い出す。
-
2Post-deployment verification verify
Confirm patched version is live in productionパッチ適用後、ステージングで PoC または同等の悪用パターンを再現して脆弱性が閉じたことを確認。本番ではアクセスログ・WAF でアラート再発が無いか継続監視。
Fix status by distribution
Fixed packages published by each distribution for this CVE
- Debian DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98496 linux Fixed in: 7.2.9-1
References
- web git.kernel.org
- web git.kernel.org
- web git.kernel.org
- web nvd.nist.gov
- web github.com