Linux Kernel up to 7.3-rc3 mwifiex mwifiex_ret_802_11_scan buffer overflow

CVSS Meta Temp Score CVSS is a standardized scoring system to determine possibilities of attacks. The Temp Score considers temporal factors like disclosure, exploit and countermeasures. The unique Meta Score calculates the average score of different sources to provide a normalized scoring system.	Current Exploit Price (≈) Our analysts are monitoring exploit markets and are in contact with vulnerability brokers. The range indicates the observed or calculated exploit price to be seen on exploit markets. A good indicator to understand the monetary effort required for and the popularity of an attack.	CTI Interest Score Our Cyber Threat Intelligence team is monitoring different web sites, mailing lists, exploit markets and social media networks. The CTI Interest Score identifies the interest of attackers and the security community for this specific vulnerability in real-time. A high score indicates an elevated risk to be targeted for this vulnerability.
9.5	$5k-$25k	0.26

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 7.3-rc3. It has been rated as very critical. Affected is the function mwifiex_ret_802_11_scan of the component mwifiex. This manipulation causes buffer overflow. This vulnerability is tracked as CVE-2026-98185. The attack is possible to be carried out remotely. No exploit exists. Upgrading the affected component is advised.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability classified as very critical was found in Linux Kernel up to 7.3-rc3. Affected by this vulnerability is the function mwifiex_ret_802_11_scan of the component mwifiex. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a buffer overflow vulnerability. The CWE definition for the vulnerability is CWE-120. The product copies an input buffer to an output buffer without verifying that the size of the input buffer is less than the size of the output buffer, leading to a buffer overflow. As an impact it is known to affect confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: mwifiex: validate scan response extents mwifiex_ret_802_11_scan() subtracts the fixed response fields and the firmware-provided BSS length from resp->size without first proving that either extent fits. A short response or oversized BSS length can therefore underflow tlv_buf_size and make the TLV parser walk beyond the command response. Compute the fixed extent from the selected normal or background scan response. Validate that the fixed fields and BSS data fit before deriving the TLV extent and entering the parser.

It is possible to read the advisory at git.kernel.org. This vulnerability is known as CVE-2026-98185 since 09/25/2026. The exploitation appears to be easy. The attack can be launched remotely. The exploitation doesn't need any form of authentication. Technical details of the vulnerability are known, but there is no available exploit. The pricing for an exploit might be around USD $5k-$25k at the moment (estimation calculated on 10/06/2026).

Upgrading to version 5.10.271, 5.15.222, 6.1.189, 6.6.158, 6.12.112, 6.18.54, 7.2.8 or 7.3-rc4 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch 25217c5f6ce0bf3004f80c129464cd35fe9a420f/48312f0085aa1577d6d41af2a079b34de17c1a57/dccf5ecaad4d8d43c545921f20328e8f91af8698/c4943323fda22ef27bb6479b9d328ae48c63f64c/cb0008480ed7d5cf76f3ad9668a91bbb7d0b4417/9cff2f39ed38a32070b08364c4c9346e85b8f9ec/7106ad8b74f50cca1ef36131f327d2c78f556daa/3687d7d48070838cc2953431b3a27717cab0aaf6 is able to eliminate this problem. The best possible mitigation is suggested to be upgrading to the latest version.

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Productinfo

Type

• Operating System

Vendor

• Linux

Name

• Kernel

Version

• 5.10.270
• 5.15.221
• 6.1.188
• 6.6.157
• 6.12.111
• 6.18.0
• 6.18.1
• 6.18.2
• 6.18.3
• 6.18.4
• 6.18.5
• 6.18.6
• 6.18.7
• 6.18.8
• 6.18.9
• 6.18.10
• 6.18.11
• 6.18.12
• 6.18.13
• 6.18.14
• 6.18.15
• 6.18.16
• 6.18.17
• 6.18.18
• 6.18.19
• 6.18.20
• 6.18.21
• 6.18.22
• 6.18.23
• 6.18.24
• 6.18.25
• 6.18.26
• 6.18.27
• 6.18.28
• 6.18.29
• 6.18.30
• 6.18.31
• 6.18.32
• 6.18.33
• 6.18.34
• 6.18.35
• 6.18.36
• 6.18.37
• 6.18.38
• 6.18.39
• 6.18.40
• 6.18.41
• 6.18.42
• 6.18.43
• 6.18.44
• 6.18.45
• 6.18.46
• 6.18.47
• 6.18.48
• 6.18.49
• 6.18.50
• 6.18.51
• 6.18.52
• 6.18.53
• 7.2.0
• 7.2.1
• 7.2.2
• 7.2.3
• 7.2.4
• 7.2.5
• 7.2.6
• 7.2.7
• 7.3-rc1
• 7.3-rc2
• 7.3-rc3

License

• open-source

Website

• Vendor: https://www.kernel.org/

CPE 2.3info

• 🔒
• 🔒
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CPE 2.2info

• 🔒
• 🔒
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CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 10.0
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 9.5

VulDB Base Score: 10.0
VulDB Temp Score: 9.5
VulDB Vector: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv2info

AV	AC	Au	C	I	A
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳

Vector	Complexity	Authentication	Confidentiality	Integrity	Availability
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock

VulDB Base Score: 🔒
VulDB Temp Score: 🔒
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Buffer overflow
CWE: CWE-120 / CWE-119
CAPEC: 🔒
ATT&CK: 🔒

Physical: No
Local: No
Remote: Yes

Availability: 🔒
Status: Not defined
Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔒

0-Day	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Today	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Upgrade
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔒

Upgrade: Kernel 5.10.271/5.15.222/6.1.189/6.6.158/6.12.112/6.18.54/7.2.8/7.3-rc4
Patch: 25217c5f6ce0bf3004f80c129464cd35fe9a420f/48312f0085aa1577d6d41af2a079b34de17c1a57/dccf5ecaad4d8d43c545921f20328e8f91af8698/c4943323fda22ef27bb6479b9d328ae48c63f64c/cb0008480ed7d5cf76f3ad9668a91bbb7d0b4417/9cff2f39ed38a32070b08364c4c9346e85b8f9ec/7106ad8b74f50cca1ef36131f327d2c78f556daa/3687d7d48070838cc2953431b3a27717cab0aaf6

Timelineinfo

09/25/2026 CVE reserved
10/06/2026 +11 days Advisory disclosed
10/06/2026 +0 days VulDB entry created
10/06/2026 +0 days VulDB entry last update

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: kernel.org

Advisory: git.kernel.org
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2026-98185 (🔒)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2026-98185
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-414127

Entryinfo

Created: 10/06/2026 13:00
Changes: 10/06/2026 13:00 (59)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

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