# CVE-2026-98021: net: reject oversized tx_queue_len at netlink parse time

> An unprivileged user can trigger excessive memory allocation in network drivers by setting oversized queue lengths, leading to 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:** 25 Sep 2026
- **Updated:** 21 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-104346, BELL-CVE-2026-98021, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98021, GHSA-xp4j-cc89-xj49, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-98021

## What is CVE-2026-98021?

CVE-2026-98021 is a vulnerability in Linux, published on 25 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:

net: reject oversized tx_queue_len at netlink parse time

rtnl_create_link() assigns IFLA_TXQLEN directly to dev->tx_queue_len
without going through netif_change_tx_queue_len(), so a device created
with "ip link add ... txqueuelen 500000" bypasses the S16_MAX cap and
still triggers the oversized ring allocations in pfifo_fast, tun and
tap. The veth peer nest (rtnl_nla_parse_ifinfomsg()) and the
RTM_NEWLINK-on-existing-device path reach the same sinks.

Enforce the cap in ifla_policy instead: IFLA_TXQLEN becomes
NLA_POLICY_FULL_RANGE(NLA_U32, &txqlen_range) with
txqlen_range = { .min = 0, .max = S16_MAX }. All netlink consumers
parse against this policy - rtnl_setlink(), rtnl_newlink() (create
and change), and the veth peer nest - so every netlink path is capped
at parse time and rejects the attribute with -ERANGE plus a proper
"integer out of range" extack message before any device state is
modified (the RTM_SETLINK half-application wart is gone with it).

Document the bound in the rt-link.yaml netlink spec.

Conditions to recreate the bug:
- CONFIG_NET_SCHED=y, CONFIG_VETH=y, CONFIG_USER_NS=y, CONFIG_NET_NS=y.
- Unprivileged user in a fresh user+net namespace (unshare -Urn):
  ip link add v0 txqueuelen 500000 type veth peer name v1
  -> on the fixed kernel this is rejected with -ERANGE ("integer out
  of range" extack) instead of installing an oversized tx_queue_len
  that later inflates pfifo_fast/tun/tap ring allocations.
- ip link set v0 txqueuelen 500000 is likewise rejected at parse time.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-98021?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-98021?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-98021 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-98021 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-98021 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-98021 is a vulnerability in Linux, published on 25 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-2026-98021 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-2026-98021/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98021/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-98021
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98021
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-98021

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98021/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.