CVE-2026-22978 wifi: avoid kernel-infoleak from struct iw_point
A local attacker can read uninitialized kernel memory via the iw_point structure, potentially exposing sensitive kernel data.
- 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
What is CVE-2026-22978?
CVE-2026-22978 is a low-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 23 Jan 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:
wifi: avoid kernel-infoleak from struct iw_point
struct iw_point has a 32bit hole on 64bit arches.
struct iw_point { void __user *pointer; /* Pointer to the data (in user space) */ __u16 length; /* number of fields or size in bytes */ __u16 flags; /* Optional params */ };
Make sure to zero the structure to avoid disclosing 32bits of kernel data to user space.
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-22978?
It affects 1 product.
Products include Linux kernel.
How do I fix CVE-2026-22978?
Apply the vendor's patch.
Is CVE-2026-22978 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-22978 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel
Sources
Also known as AZL-78452, BELL-CVE-2026-22978, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-22978, GHSA-gj23-c8mg-cv5r, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2204-CVE-2026-22978, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2404-CVE-2026-22978 and 1 more.