CVE-2026-98823

critical

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: cfg80211: preserve hidden-group beacon IE ownership A hidden-group probe-response entry borrows its beacon IEs from the group's beacon entry. cfg80211_update_assoc_bss_entry() can pass such an entry to cfg80211_update_known_bss() when merging scan entries after a channel switch. Copying the borrowed beacon_ies into the associated entry gives the same allocation two owners. Releasing the group's beacon entry can then leave the associated entry pointing to freed IEs, which are freed again when that entry is released. Skip beacon IE replacement when the source entry belongs to a hidden group. Preserve probe-response processing, the subsequent metadata updates, and the existing rejection path for conflicting hidden beacon updates.