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CVE-2026-72004

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: mac80211: fix memory leak in ieee80211_register_hw() If kmemdup() fails while copying supported band structures, the erro…

Published Aug 15, 2026EPSS 0.22%

Overview

CVE-2026-72004 is a known-severity vulnerability. It was published on August 15, 2026.

Technical description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

wifi: mac80211: fix memory leak in ieee80211_register_hw()

If kmemdup() fails while copying supported band structures, the error

path jumps to fail_rate. This skips rate_control_deinitialize() and

leaks the initialized local->rate_ctrl.

Fix this by adding a fail_band label that shares the rate-control cleanup

path before falling through to the remaining teardown.

The bug was first flagged by an experimental analysis tool we are

developing for kernel memory-management bugs while analyzing

v6.13-rc1. The tool is still under development and is not yet publicly

available. Manual inspection confirms that the bug is still present in

v7.1-rc7.

An x86_64 allyesconfig build showed no new warnings. As we do not have a

suitable mac80211 device/driver combination to test with, no runtime

testing was able to be performed.

Remediation

Check the references section for vendor advisories, patches, and mitigation guidance. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-72004?

CVE-2026-72004 is a known-severity vulnerability. It was published on August 15, 2026.

How severe is CVE-2026-72004?

CVSS score information is not yet available for this vulnerability. Check back as the CVE record is updated by NVD analysts.

How do I fix or remediate CVE-2026-72004?

Check the references section for vendor advisories, patches, and mitigation guidance. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.

How can CyberStrike help with CVE-2026-72004?

CyberStrike is an open-source, AI-augmented pentesting engine. Rather than flag a version number, it tests whether an issue like CVE-2026-72004 is actually reachable in your own applications and APIs, then verifies each finding before reporting it. That tells you if the weakness is a real, exploitable risk in your environment or a false positive you can safely deprioritize.