# CVE-2026-74510: Bluetooth: mgmt: fix UAF in pair command cancellation

> A race condition in the Linux kernel Bluetooth management layer allows a use-after-free, potentially enabling local attackers to execute code or escalate privileges.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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:** 15 Aug 2026
- **Updated:** 16 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-96237, BELL-CVE-2026-74510, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-74510, GHSA-7hq2-xwxm-f2g8, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-74510

## What is CVE-2026-74510?

CVE-2026-74510 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux, published on 15 Aug 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:

Bluetooth: mgmt: fix UAF in pair command cancellation

The pairing completion and authentication failure callbacks look up the
pending MGMT_OP_PAIR_DEVICE command by walking hdev->mgmt_pending. The
lookup returned a command that was still linked on the shared pending list,
without keeping mgmt_pending_lock held for the later dereference and
removal.

A concurrent MGMT_OP_CANCEL_PAIR_DEVICE request can remove and free the
same pending command before the callback uses it. The reverse race is also
possible when cancel_pair_device() gets a command from pending_find() and a
callback removes it before the cancel path dereferences it. This can lead
to a use-after-free and a second list_del().

Make the pairing lookup helpers transfer ownership of the pending command
by removing it from hdev->mgmt_pending while holding mgmt_pending_lock.
The callbacks and cancel path then complete the command and free it
directly, so racing paths cannot find or free the same command again. Take
a temporary hci_conn reference in cancel_pair_device() because the command
completion drops the reference stored in the pending command.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-74510?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-74510?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-74510 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-74510 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-74510 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-74510 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux, published on 15 Aug 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-2026-74510 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux. 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-2026-74510/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-74510/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-74510
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-74510
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-74510

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-74510/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.