# CVE-2026-100076: staging: rtl8723bs: fix xmit_frame/xmit_buf leaks on mgnt-frame error paths

> A memory leak in the rtl8723bs Wi-Fi driver allows attackers to exhaust management TX pools, causing denial of service by preventing beacon and probe responses.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 25 Sep 2026
- **Updated:** 21 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-104450, BELL-CVE-2026-100076, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-100076, GHSA-hgm4-f6j5-3x27, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-100076

## What is CVE-2026-100076?

CVE-2026-100076 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 25 Sep 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

staging: rtl8723bs: fix xmit_frame/xmit_buf leaks on mgnt-frame error paths

issue_beacon(), issue_probersp() and issue_asocrsp() obtain a management
xmit_frame together with its xmit_buf from the driver's fixed-size
management-TX pools via alloc_mgtxmitframe(). On the normal path the frame
is handed to dump_mgntframe(), which transfers ownership and eventually
returns both objects to their pools (the frame and, for beacons, the buf
in rtl8723bs_mgnt_xmit(); other bufs via the pending-xmitbuf/TX-completion
path).

Several error/edge paths return early after a successful
alloc_mgtxmitframe() but before dump_mgntframe(), so ownership is never
transferred and neither object is freed:

  - issue_beacon(): beacon larger than 512 bytes
  - issue_probersp(): cur_network->ie_length > MAX_IE_SZ
  - issue_probersp(): kzalloc() of the SSID scratch buffer fails
  - issue_asocrsp(): pkt_type is neither ASSOCRSP nor REASSOCRSP

Because alloc_mgtxmitframe() removes the frame and buf from their free
lists (list_del_init) without placing them on any pending list, an
orphaned pair is on no list and referenced by nobody, so it is only
reclaimed at driver teardown. Repeated hits progressively exhaust the
management-TX pools until alloc_mgtxmitframe() returns NULL and the
interface can no longer send beacons or probe/assoc responses.

Free the frame and buffer on these paths, matching the existing correct
error handling in issue_assocreq().

Weakness: CWE-401 (Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-100076?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2026-100076?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-100076 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-100076 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-100076 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-100076 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 25 Sep 2026. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-100076 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux kernel. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-100076/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-100076/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-100076
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-100076
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-100076

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-100076/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.