# CVE-2026-90253: Bluetooth: MGMT: free the mesh send cancel command when it is cancelled

> A memory leak in the Linux kernel Bluetooth mesh subsystem allows local attackers to exhaust memory and pin socket references, causing denial of service.

- **Severity:** Not scored
- **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:** 17 Sep 2026
- **Updated:** 19 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-102335, BELL-CVE-2026-90253, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-90253, GHSA-qmmq-qm3c-v3pp, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-90253

## What is CVE-2026-90253?

CVE-2026-90253 is a memory corruption vulnerability in Linux, published on 17 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:

Bluetooth: MGMT: free the mesh send cancel command when it is cancelled

mesh_send_cancel() queues the pending command with a NULL destroy
callback, so it is only freed if send_cancel() runs. A cancelled entry is
leaked, as _hci_cmd_sync_cancel_entry() does not release entry->data when
there is no destroy callback, and hci_cmd_sync_clear() cancels every
pending entry when the controller is unregistered. Nothing else reclaims
it either: mgmt_pending_new() does not put the command on
hdev->mgmt_pending.

The leak also pins the socket reference taken by mgmt_pending_new(), so
the mgmt socket is never released.

Free the command from a destroy callback.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-90253?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-90253?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-90253 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-90253 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-90253 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-90253 is a memory corruption vulnerability in Linux, published on 17 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-2026-90253 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-2026-90253/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-90253/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-90253
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-90253
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-90253

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-90253/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.