{"cve":"CVE-2026-98550","nvd":{"published":"2026-10-18T16:17:07.030","modified":"2026-10-24T14:16:47.290","status":"Received","description":"In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\ntipc: reject invalid and unexpected GRP_ACK_MSG to prevent bc_ackers underflow\n\nCommit 48a5fe38772b (\"tipc: fix bc_ackers underflow on duplicate\nGRP_ACK_MSG\") rejected duplicate/stale ACKs in tipc_group_proto_rcv()\nby returning early when less_eq(acked, m->bc_acked).\n\nHowever, that check remains incomplete in two ways:\n\n1. When grp->bc_ackers is zero (e.g. on a quiet group, when replicast\n   ACKs were not requested, or after all expected members have already\n   acknowledged), an unexpected GRP_ACK_MSG with acked > m->bc_acked\n   passes less_eq() and unconditionally decrements grp->bc_ackers.\n   Because bc_ackers is a u16, this wraps to 65535, causing\n   tipc_group_bc_cong() to permanently report congestion and blocking\n   all future group broadcasts on the socket.\n\n2. During an active broadcast round (grp->bc_ackers > 0), the sender\n   transmits packet S and advances grp->bc_snd_nxt to S + 1. Receivers\n   increment their expected counter to S + 1 upon consuming packet S,\n   so the only valid ACK value for the current round is strictly\n   acked == grp->bc_snd_nxt.\n\n   However, tipc_group_update_bc_members() initializes each member's\n   m->bc_acked to prev = grp->bc_snd_nxt - 1 (S - 1 before increment).\n   This leaves a 2-sequence gap (S - 1 to S + 1) in sequence space.\n   An incoming ACK is therefore neither rejected as duplicate nor\n   prevented from decrementing grp->bc_ackers if an unexpected or stale\n   value (such as S) is received. A member sending acked = S followed\n   by acked = S + 1 could decrement grp->bc_ackers twice in the same\n   round, prematurely clearing bc_ackers or underflowing it.\n\nFix this by:\n- Dropping GRP_ACK_MSG immediately if grp->bc_ackers is zero.\n- Requiring acked == grp->bc_snd_nxt and rejecting duplicates where\n  m->bc_acked == acked. Because replicast broadcast rounds are strictly\n  sequential, only grp->bc_snd_nxt can be acknowledged, and each member\n  can acknowledge at most once per round.\n\nNote that a related pre-existing issue in tipc_group_delete_member()\n(where grp->bc_ackers decrementing to zero upon member departure does\nnot restore *grp->open or trigger a socket wakeup) will be addressed\nin a separate patch.","cvss_v4":null,"cvss_v3":{"version":"3.1","vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H","score":7.5},"cwes":[],"references":["https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/12cc3a1eac5a2a06b67a7b85f0f48ff241a94d1b","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/478fb08d0c2a53002a721d22b8d6681ec971d90f","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/507a27435b2bb1f22e3a3674f6a6553eb815021b","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/80a9ccfc24d3776ef6753a57315e726475fac7d7","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/99cc2a62e07a44a22254d7beca9ef1f8ad886d0d"],"products":[],"source":"nvd","synced_at":"2026-10-24T16:53:35.584907681+00:00"},"epss":{"cve":"CVE-2026-98550","score":0.00677,"percentile":0.52014,"date":"2026-10-25"},"kev":null,"osv":[],"attribution":["This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.","EPSS scores: FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System, https://www.first.org/epss","Known exploited vulnerabilities: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog","Package advisories: OSV (https://osv.dev), from the GitHub Advisory Database, PyPA, Go, RustSec and other ecosystem databases, under CC-BY 4.0 or CC0","CVE records: the CVE Program's CVE List (https://www.cve.org), under its terms of use (https://www.cve.org/Legal/TermsOfUse). CVE is a registered trademark of The MITRE Corporation; this product is not affiliated with the CVE Program."]}