The vulnerability is a memory leak in the batman‑adv module of the Linux kernel. When a network interface is disabled, the cleanup routine stores and frees the aggregation list, but the OGM send function can still enqueue onto that list. These skb objects therefore never get freed or processed, leading to a buildup of unreferenced memory. The abuse of this flaw can eventually exhaust available memory, causing the system to become unresponsive or enforce negative performance, which is a classic denial of service scenario. This issue falls under CWE‑772, which covers improper deallocation of resources.

All Linux systems that ship an unpatched batman‑adv module are affected. The description does not specify a version range, so any kernel that incorporates the buggy OGM aggregation logic remains vulnerable until the community or vendor releases a fix. Because batman‑adv is a kernel networking stack for mesh routing, it is present in mainstream distributions and in many embedded or network‑focused devices that rely on Linux for mesh networking.

The CVSS score is not supplied, but the EPSS score is below 1 %, suggesting that active exploitation is rare. The lack of a KEV listing also implies that no widespread attacks have been observed. Nevertheless, the impact can be achieved by repeatedly generating OGM packets or by remotely triggering interface disable events, resulting in gradual memory exhaustion. Until a patched kernel is available, the risk can be mitigated through upgrade or functional restriction, but organizations that cannot update immediately face potential resource depletion threats.