# CVE-2026-97442: wifi: ath11k: fix invalid data access in ath11k_dp_rx_h_undecap_nwifi

> A flaw in the ath11k Wi-Fi driver allows invalid data access leading to memory corruption and potential code execution or system crash.

- **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **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:** 24 Sep 2026
- **Updated:** 3 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-104051, BELL-CVE-2026-97442, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-97442, GHSA-jg3c-6f6j-vm3c, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-97442

## What is CVE-2026-97442?

CVE-2026-97442 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Linux, published on 24 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:

wifi: ath11k: fix invalid data access in ath11k_dp_rx_h_undecap_nwifi

In certain cases, hardware might provide packets with a
length greater than the maximum native Wi-Fi header length.
This can lead to accessing and modifying fields in the header
within the ath11k_dp_rx_h_undecap_nwifi() function for the
DP_RX_DECAP_TYPE_NATIVE_WIFI decap type and
potentially result in invalid data access and memory corruption.

Kernel stack is corrupted in: ath11k_dp_rx_h_undecap+0x6b0/0x6b0 [ath11k]
Call trace:
 ath11k_dp_rx_h_mpdu+0x0/0x2e8 [ath11k]
 ath11k_dp_rx_h_mpdu+0x1e0/0x2e8 [ath11k]
 ath11k_dp_rx_wbm_err+0x1e0/0x450 [ath11k]
 ath11k_dp_rx_process_wbm_err+0x2fc/0x460 [ath11k]
 ath11k_dp_service_srng+0x2e0/0x348 [ath11k]

Add a sanity check before processing the SKB to prevent invalid
data access in the undecap native Wi-Fi function for the
DP_RX_DECAP_TYPE_NATIVE_WIFI decap type.

This adapted from the discussion/patch of the ath12k driver [1].

Tested-on: WCN6855 hw2.1 PCI WLAN.HSP.1.1-04685-QCAHSPSWPL_V1_V2_SILICONZ_IOE-1

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-97442?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-97442?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-97442 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-97442 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-97442 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-97442 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Linux, published on 24 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-2026-97442 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-2026-97442/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-97442/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-97442
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-97442
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-97442

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-97442/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.