CVE-2026-99010: Bluetooth: RFCOMM: free the skb when the DLC has no owner

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 2026-10-30

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: Bluetooth: RFCOMM: free the skb when the DLC has no owner rfcomm_recv_data() hands the skb to d->data_ready() and returns 0 without freeing it, so the callback owns the skb from that point on. The tty implementation frees it when the DLC has been detached from its device: static void rfcomm_dev_data_ready(struct rfcomm_dlc *dlc, struct sk_buff *skb) { struct rfcomm_dev *dev = dlc->owner; if (!dev) { kfree_skb(skb); return; } The socket implementation returns without freeing it, and the skb is leaked. A connected DLC can have no owner: rfcomm_sock_destruct() clears d->owner, while the DLC itself stays on the session until it is closed. Data frames that arrive in that window still find d->state == BT_CONNECTED in rfcomm_recv_data() and are handed to the callback, one leaked skb each. The leak does not stop on its own either. The remote runs out of credits only once RFCOMM_RX_THROTTLED is set, and for a socket the only place that sets it is rfcomm_sk_data_ready() itself, below the return. rfcomm_process_dlcs() keeps granting credits, so the remote keeps sending and the leak keeps growing. Free the skb, as the tty side does.

Affected products

Linux: 2.6.12 — fixed in 7.3

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Linux 7.3. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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