# CVE-2026-98602: Bluetooth: bnep: fix out-of-bounds reads on short RX/TX frames and control fallthrough

> An attacker within Bluetooth range can trigger out-of-bounds reads in the Linux kernel BNEP driver, potentially leaking sensitive memory information.

- **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:** 18 Oct 2026
- **Updated:** 19 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-108836, BELL-CVE-2026-98602, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98602, GHSA-qjmf-g685-hvmr, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-98602

## What is CVE-2026-98602?

CVE-2026-98602 is a vulnerability in Linux, published on 18 Oct 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: bnep: fix out-of-bounds reads on short RX/TX frames and control fallthrough

Fix multiple out-of-bounds reads in Bluetooth BNEP frame processing:

1. In bnep_rx_frame() and bnep_ctrl_frame() (net/bluetooth/bnep/core.c),
   use pskb_may_pull() to verify the BNEP header, control type byte,
   filter count, and extension headers exist before reading them, and
   return 0 after handling BNEP_CONTROL instead of falling through to
   Ethernet frame submission when no extension headers follow.
2. In bnep_net_xmit() (net/bluetooth/bnep/netdev.c), verify skb->len >=
   ETH_HLEN with pskb_may_pull() before reading the 14-byte Ethernet
   header to prevent an out-of-bounds heap read and infoleak on short
   AF_PACKET TX frames.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-98602?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-98602?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-98602 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-98602 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-98602 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-98602 is a vulnerability in Linux, published on 18 Oct 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-2026-98602 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-2026-98602/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98602/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-98602
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98602
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-98602

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98602/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.