CVE-2026-98912: ALSA: seq: oss: Reject reads that cannot fit the next event

Severity: unknown
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.2% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: none known
Published: 2026-10-23 · updated 2026-10-26

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ALSA: seq: oss: Reject reads that cannot fit the next event snd_seq_oss_read() checks whether the next queued OSS sequencer event fits in the remaining userspace buffer before removing it from the read queue. The check is inverted. It currently stops when the event is smaller than the remaining buffer, so a normal 4-byte event is not copied for an 8-byte read buffer. Conversely, an 8-byte event can be copied for a smaller read count. Break only when the remaining userspace buffer is smaller than the next event, and report -EINVAL if no complete event has been copied. This prevents an undersized read from looking like end-of-file while leaving the event queued for a later read with a large enough buffer.

Affected products

Linux kernel: before 5.10.271; before 5.15.222; before 6.1.189; before 6.6.158; before 6.12.111; before 6.18.53 — fixed in 5.10.271, 5.15.222, 6.1.189, 6.12.111, 6.18.53, 6.6.158

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Linux kernel 5.10.271, 5.15.222, 6.1.189, 6.12.111. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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