In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
net: ks8851: Handle softirqs at the end of IRQ thread to fix hang
The ks8851_irq() thread may call ks8851_rx_pkts() in case there are
any packets in the MAC FIFO, which calls netif_rx(). This netif_rx()
implementation is guarded by local_bh_disable() and local_bh_enable().
The local_bh_enable() may call do_softirq() to run softirqs in case
any are pending. One of the softirqs is net_rx_action, which ultimately
reaches the driver .start_xmit callback. If that happens, the system
hangs. The entire call chain is below:
ks8851_start_xmit_par from netdev_start_xmit
netdev_start_xmit from dev_hard_start_xmit
dev_hard_start_xmit from sch_direct_xmit
sch_direct_xmit from __dev_queue_xmit
__dev_queue_xmit from __neigh_update
__neigh_update from neigh_update
neigh_update from arp_process.constprop.0
arp_process.constprop.0 from __netif_receive_skb_one_core
__netif_receive_skb_one_core from process_backlog
process_backlog from __napi_poll.constprop.0
__napi_poll.constprop.0 from net_rx_action
net_rx_action from __do_softirq
__do_softirq from call_with_stack
call_with_stack from do_softirq
do_softirq from __local_bh_enable_ip
__local_bh_enable_ip from netif_rx
netif_rx from ks8851_irq
ks8851_irq from irq_thread_fn
irq_thread_fn from irq_thread
irq_thread from kthread
kthread from ret_from_fork
The hang happens because ks8851_irq() first locks a spinlock in
ks8851_par.c ks8851_lock_par() spin_lock_irqsave(&ksp->lock, ...)
and with that spinlock locked, calls netif_rx(). Once the execution
reaches ks8851_start_xmit_par(), it calls ks8851_lock_par() again
which attempts to claim the already locked spinlock again, and the
hang happens.
Move the do_softirq() call outside of the spinlock protected section
of ks8851_irq() by disabling BHs around the entire spinlock protected
section of ks8851_irq() handler. Place local_bh_enable() outside of
the spinlock protected section, so that it can trigger do_softirq()
without the ks8851_par.c ks8851_lock_par() spinlock being held, and
safely call ks8851_start_xmit_par() without attempting to lock the
already locked spinlock.
Since ks8851_irq() is protected by local_bh_disable()/local_bh_enable()
now, replace netif_rx() with __netif_rx() which is not duplicating the
local_bh_disable()/local_bh_enable() calls.
What the EG score is made of (scorer v4.0: the three questions the 0–10 score mixes, published apart · methodology)
The EG score (5.5): severity, escalated by confirmed exploitation. This CVE's 5.5 is its impact severity (EG Severity), not escalated.
- EG Severity
- 5.5 MEDIUMCVSS-B, impact only: no KEV listing, EPSS or EG-KEV tier raises it.GitHub Security Advisory CVSS
- EG Likelihood
- 0.7% within 30 daysSource: FIRST EPSS (model v2026.06.15, score date 2026-10-25). FIRST's exploitation probability, not an EchelonGraph model.
- Confirmed exploitation
- None on record (CISA KEV, EG-KEV Tier 1)Reported apart from the likelihood: an observed fact, not a probability.
- EG Priority
- SSVC Track at medium mission impactTrack at every mission impact level.CISA BOD 26-04: 60 days if the affected system is publicly exposed; Fix on system upgrade if it is not.Each input and its source, and whom BOD 26-04 binds: the SSVC and BOD 26-04 blocks below.
SSVC (CISA's decision table, applied by EchelonGraph)Track at every mission impact level.
A fix is available. Apply it within your standard update timelines.
Exploitation none (CISA Vulnrichment) · Automatable no (CISA Vulnrichment) · Technical impact partial (CISA Vulnrichment). All three are CISA's SSVC values (Vulnrichment). EchelonGraph applied CISA's decision table to them; CISA publishes SSVC inputs and the table, not a decision for each CVE. Mission impact is CISA's Mission & Well-being decision point, and only you can judge it. CISA's table makes it high when Mission Prevalence is Essential — the vulnerable component "directly provides capabilities that constitute at least one MEF for at least one entity" (MEF: mission essential function) — or when Public Well-Being Impact is Irreversible: "multiple fatalities are likely", the cyber-physical system "is likely lost or destroyed", "extreme or serious externalities" are imposed on other parties, or social systems such as elections or the financial grid "are destabilized and potentially collapse". CISA's decision table
BOD 26-04 (CISA's remediation timeline, Table 1)60 days if the affected system is publicly exposed; Fix on system upgrade if it is not.
The score's inputs: In CISA KEV no (CISA's KEV catalog) · Automatable no (CISA Vulnrichment) · Technical impact partial (CISA Vulnrichment). Whether your system is publicly exposed is yours to answer. BOD 26-04 binds US Federal Civilian Executive Branch agencies; for anyone else it is CISA's published timeline, a reference rather than an obligation. The directive · how EchelonGraph applies it