# CVE-2026-98089: bonding: alb: fix uninitialized transport header access in alb_determine_nd()

> An attacker can trigger out-of-bounds memory access in the Linux kernel bonding driver via crafted ICMPv6 packets, potentially causing a crash or code execution.

- **Severity:** Not scored
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 25 Sep 2026
- **Updated:** 19 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-104669, BELL-CVE-2026-98089, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98089, GHSA-3x47-v429-xjvw, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-98089

## What is CVE-2026-98089?

CVE-2026-98089 is a memory corruption vulnerability in Linux, published on 25 Sep 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

bonding: alb: fix uninitialized transport header access in alb_determine_nd()

alb_determine_nd() uses icmp6_hdr(skb) to inspect ICMPv6 headers.
However, in xmit paths (e.g. packets sent via AF_PACKET / raw sockets
or forwarded packets), skb->transport_header is not guaranteed to be
initialized. While pskb_network_may_pull() ensures the packet data is
linear starting from the network header, it does not set or adjust the
transport header offset.

Dereferencing icmp6_hdr(skb) can therefore access out-of-bounds memory.

Fetch the icmp6hdr directly after ipv6hdr following pskb_network_may_pull(),
and reload ipv6hdr in case pskb_may_pull() reallocated skb->head.
Also remove the unused bond argument from alb_determine_nd().

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-98089?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-98089?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-98089 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-98089 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-98089 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-98089 is a memory corruption vulnerability in Linux, published on 25 Sep 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-98089 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-2026-98089/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98089/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-98089
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98089
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-98089

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98089/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.