# CVE-2026-98735: Bluetooth: hci_core: Serialize ACL scheduling with channel deletion

> A use-after-free in the Linux kernel Bluetooth subsystem allows attackers to cause denial of service or execute code via race conditions during channel deletion.

- **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:** 21 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-109326, BELL-CVE-2026-98735, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98735, GHSA-h7jm-4xpc-fcgr, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-98735

## What is CVE-2026-98735?

CVE-2026-98735 is an use after free 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: hci_core: Serialize ACL scheduling with channel deletion

hci_chan_sent() selects a channel under RCU but drops the read lock before
accessing chan->conn and returning the channel. The ACL and LE schedulers
then use its packet queue and update its transmit counters without any
protection against channel deletion.

After TX selects a channel and releases RCU, a disconnect command timeout
on the separate request workqueue can run hci_conn_failed() and
l2cap_conn_del(). hci_chan_del() can then unlink the channel, complete
synchronize_rcu(), purge its queue and free it before TX resumes. This
causes use-after-free both in hci_chan_sent() and in its callers.

KASAN reported:

  BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in hci_chan_sent+0x892/0x9b0
  Workqueue: hci0 hci_tx_work
  Call Trace:
   hci_chan_sent+0x892/0x9b0
   hci_tx_work+0x5e6/0xb70
  Allocated by task 91:
   hci_chan_create+0xe3/0x350
   l2cap_conn_add.part.0+0x12/0xa30
   l2cap_chan_connect+0x110d/0x1b60
   l2cap_sock_connect+0x310/0x530
  Freed by task 99:
   hci_chan_del+0x11f/0x170
   l2cap_conn_del+0x4f1/0x800
   l2cap_connect_cfm+0x88c/0xd30
   hci_conn_failed+0x150/0x250
   hci_abort_conn_sync+0x3e3/0x800
   hci_cmd_sync_run+0x7e/0xc0
   hci_abort_conn+0x105/0x1f0
   disconnect_sync+0x157/0x290
   hci_cmd_sync_work+0x13c/0x290

Hold the existing device mutex across channel selection and transmission
in both schedulers to serialize them with channel teardown. Keep timeout
handling outside the critical sections because hci_link_tx_to() acquires
the same mutex. This also permits the transmit path to sleep, unlike
extending the RCU read-side critical section across packet submission.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-98735?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-98735?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-98735 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-98735 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-98735 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-98735 is an use after free 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-2026-98735 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-2026-98735/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98735/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-98735
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98735
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-98735

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-98735/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.