# CVE-2026-80795: nfc: nci: fix out-of-bounds write in nci_target_auto_activated()

> A missing bounds check in the Linux kernel NFC driver allows an adjacent attacker to trigger an out-of-bounds write, potentially leading to code execution or privilege escalation.

- **Severity:** Not scored
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 4 Sep 2026
- **Updated:** 19 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-99483, BELL-CVE-2026-80795, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-80795, GHSA-rj9g-hqc5-rqg9, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-80795

## What is CVE-2026-80795?

CVE-2026-80795 is a memory corruption vulnerability in Linux, published on 4 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:

nfc: nci: fix out-of-bounds write in nci_target_auto_activated()

nci_target_auto_activated() appends a target to the fixed-size array
ndev->targets[NCI_MAX_DISCOVERED_TARGETS] and increments ndev->n_targets
without first checking the array is full; unlike its sibling
nci_add_new_target(), which bails out when n_targets already equals
NCI_MAX_DISCOVERED_TARGETS.

ndev->n_targets is only cleared by nci_clear_target_list(), so an NFCC
that repeatedly re-runs discovery (RF_DISCOVER_RSP, which re-enters
NCI_DISCOVERY without clearing the target list) and reports an
auto-activated target (RF_INTF_ACTIVATED_NTF) drives n_targets past the
limit. The append then writes a struct nfc_target past the end of the
array (a slab out-of-bounds write), and nfc_targets_found() goes on to
walk the array with the inflated count:

  BUG: KASAN: slab-out-of-bounds in nci_add_new_protocol+0x94/0x2ac [nci]
  Write of size 2 at addr ffff0000c7299a18 by task kworker/u8:0/12
  Workqueue: nfc0_nci_rx_wq nci_rx_work [nci]
  Call trace:
   nci_add_new_protocol+0x94/0x2ac [nci]
   nci_ntf_packet+0xddc/0x11a0 [nci]
   nci_rx_work+0x15c/0x1e0 [nci]
   process_one_work+0x2dc/0x500
   worker_thread+0x240/0x460
   kthread+0x1c0/0x1d0
   ret_from_fork+0x10/0x20

  The buggy address belongs to the cache kmalloc-2k of size 2048
  The buggy address is located 1024 bytes to the right of
  allocated 1560-byte region [ffff0000c7299000, ffff0000c7299618)

Guard nci_target_auto_activated() with the same check used by
nci_add_new_target().

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-80795?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-80795?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-80795 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-80795 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-80795 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-80795 is a memory corruption vulnerability in Linux, published on 4 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-2026-80795 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-2026-80795/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-80795/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-80795
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-80795
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-80795

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-80795/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.