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CVE-2026-31552

HIGHCVSS 7.5/10EPSS 0.50%

Last modified

CVE-2026-31552 is a high-severity vulnerability rated 7.5/10 on the CVSS scale. In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: wlcore: Return -ENOMEM instead of -EAGAIN if there is not enough headroom Since upstream commit e75665dd0968 ("wifi: wlcore: ensure skb headroom before skb_push"), wl1271_tx_allocate() and with it wl1271_prepare_tx_frame() returns -EAGAIN if pskb_expand_head() fails. However, in wlcore_tx_work_locked(), a return value of -EAGAIN from wl1271_prepare_tx_frame() is interpreted as the aggregation buffer being full. This causes the code to flush the buffer, put the skb back at the head of the queue, and immediately retry the same skb in a tight while loop. Because wlcore_tx_work_locked() holds wl->mutex, and the retry happens immediately with GFP_ATOMIC, this will result in an infinite loop and a CPU soft lockup. EPSS estimates a 0.50% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days.

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: wlcore: Return -ENOMEM instead of -EAGAIN if there is not enough headroom Since upstream commit e75665dd0968 ("wifi: wlcore: ensure skb headroom before skb_push"), wl1271_tx_allocate() and with it wl1271_prepare_tx_frame() returns -EAGAIN if pskb_expand_head() fails. However, in wlcore_tx_work_locked(), a return value of -EAGAIN from wl1271_prepare_tx_frame() is interpreted as the aggregation buffer being full. This causes the code to flush the buffer, put the skb back at the head of the queue, and immediately retry the same skb in a tight while loop. Because wlcore_tx_work_locked() holds wl->mutex, and the retry happens immediately with GFP_ATOMIC, this will result in an infinite loop and a CPU soft lockup. Return -ENOMEM instead so the packet is dropped and the loop terminates. The problem was found by an experimental code review agent based on gemini-3.1-pro while reviewing backports into v6.18.y.

Metrics

CVSS 3.1
7.5/10

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

EPSS Probability
0.50%

39.0th percentile

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days. Learn more

Weakness Enumeration

Affected Software

VendorProductVersionsUpdate
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 5.10.250, < 5.10.253—
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 5.15.200, < 5.15.203—
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.1.163, < 6.1.167—
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.6.124, < 6.6.130—
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.12.70, < 6.12.78—
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.18.10, < 6.18.20—
LinuxLinux Kernel>= 6.19.1, < 6.19.10—
LinuxLinux Kernel6.19—
LinuxLinux Kernel7.0Rc1

References

Timeline

Published
Last Modified
Status
Analyzed

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-31552?
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: wlcore: Return -ENOMEM instead of -EAGAIN if there is not enough headroom Since upstream commit e75665dd0968 ("wifi: wlcore: ensure skb headroom before skb_push"), wl1271_tx_allocate() and with it wl1271_prepare_tx_frame() returns -EAGAIN if pskb_expand_head() fails. However, in wlcore_tx_work_locked(), a return value of -EAGAIN from wl1271_prepare_tx_frame() is interpreted as the aggregation buffer being full. This causes the code to flush the buffer, put the skb back at the head of the queue, and immediately retry the same skb in a tight while loop. Because wlcore_tx_work_locked() holds wl->mutex, and the retry happens immediately with GFP_ATOMIC, this will result in an infinite loop and a CPU soft lockup. Return -ENOMEM instead so the packet is dropped and the loop terminates. The problem was found by an experimental code review agent based on gemini-3.1-pro while reviewing backports into v6.18.y.
How severe is CVE-2026-31552?
CVE-2026-31552 has a CVSS score of 7.5/10 (HIGH severity). The EPSS model estimates a 0.50% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
How do I fix CVE-2026-31552?
Check the vendor references and advisories linked above for patched versions and mitigation guidance. You can also run a Strix scan to test if your systems are affected.

Are you affected by CVE-2026-31552?

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Source: NVD / NIST