The flaw resides in the Linux kernel’s cfg80211 Wi‑Fi configuration subsystem, specifically in the error handling path of the cfg80211_wext_siwscan() function. When a scan request triggers a failure and the test against the maximum SSID length, IEEE80211_MAX_SSID_LEN, fails, the temporary request structure named ‘creq’ is not cleaned and remains in memory. This residual data can then be read by other processes, leaking potentially sensitive network configuration information. The vulnerability is an information‑disclosure weakness and does not directly grant code execution or denial of service, but it exposes the configuration of Wi‑Fi interfaces to an attacker on the same system.

Linux kernel implementations across all distributions are impacted, as indicated by the generic vendor/product listing of “Linux:Linux” in the CNA data. All kernel versions preceding the application of the identified patch are potentially susceptible, notably those abiding by the kernel version library at or before the commit dates referenced in the provided links.

The CVSS base score is not supplied in the current data, but the lack of an EPSS score and the absence from CISA’s KEV catalog suggest that active exploitation is not widely reported. The described attack route would require local system access to read the leaked memory, implying that the threat level is limited to high‑privilege or compromised users. Because the fix was already integrated, the risk for systems running patched kernels is effectively null; however, any system still running older configurations remains vulnerable until the patch is applied.