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

ieee802154: admin-gate legacy LLSEC dump operations

In net/ieee802154/netlink.c, the legacy IEEE802154_NL family ops table
builds the LLSEC dump entries (LLSEC_LIST_KEY, LLSEC_LIST_DEV,
LLSEC_LIST_DEVKEY, LLSEC_LIST_SECLEVEL) with IEEE802154_DUMP() which
sets no .flags, so generic netlink runs them ungated. The modern
nl802154 family admin-gates the equivalent reads via
NL802154_CMD_GET_SEC_KEY and friends with .flags = GENL_ADMIN_PERM.

Any local uid that can open AF_NETLINK / NETLINK_GENERIC can resolve
the "802.15.4 MAC" family and dump LLSEC_LIST_KEY on any wpan netdev
that has an LLSEC key installed; the dump handler writes the raw
16-byte AES-128 key bytes (IEEE802154_ATTR_LLSEC_KEY_BYTES, copied
verbatim from struct ieee802154_llsec_key.key) into the reply.
Recovering the AES key compromises 802.15.4 LLSEC link confidentiality
and authenticity, since LLSEC uses CCM* and the same key authenticates
and encrypts frames.

Impact: any local uid with no capabilities can read the raw 16-byte
AES-128 LLSEC key from the kernel keytable on any wpan netdev that has
an administrator-installed LLSEC key, by issuing an LLSEC_LIST_KEY
dump on the legacy IEEE802154_NL generic-netlink family.

Introduce IEEE802154_DUMP_PRIV() mirroring IEEE802154_DUMP() but
setting .flags = GENL_ADMIN_PERM, and use it for the four LLSEC dump
entries. LIST_PHY and LIST_IFACE retain IEEE802154_DUMP() because the
modern nl802154 family exposes their equivalents to unprivileged
readers by design (NL802154_CMD_GET_WPAN_PHY and
NL802154_CMD_GET_INTERFACE carry "can be retrieved by unprivileged
users" annotations).
Published: 2026-08-15
Score: 7.1 High
EPSS: < 1% Very Low
KEV: No
Impact: n/a
Action: n/a
AI Analysis

Impact

The flaw allows unprivileged local users to retrieve 802.15.4 LLSEC keys through a generic netlink interface in the legacy IEEE802154_NL family. The kernel builds LLSEC dump entries without any admin permissions, so when an LLSEC_LIST_KEY request is issued, the raw 16‑byte AES‑128 key is written into the netlink reply. This leaks the secret used for encrypting and authenticating frames, compromising the confidentiality and integrity of the wireless link.

Affected Systems

All Linux kernel configurations that include the ieee802154 module and expose the legacy netlink interface are affected. This includes the stock kernel in common distributions such as Ubuntu, Debian, Red Hat, and others where a wireless PAN device with LLSEC enabled is active. No specific kernel version ranges are enumerated; the vulnerability exists in all revisions prior to the commit that introduces IEEE802154_DUMP_PRIV for LLSEC dump operations.

Risk and Exploitability

Exploitation requires only local, non‑privileged access; an attacker only needs to open an AF_NETLINK socket to NETLINK_GENERIC and request the legacy LLSEC dump command. The CVSS score of 7.1 indicates moderate severity, while the EPSS of less than 1% reflects a low but non‑zero exploitation probability. The vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog, suggesting no known widespread exploitation yet, but the lack of an admin gate makes it a significant local risk for systems that rely on 802.15.4 security.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on August 18, 2026 at 06:07 UTC.

Remediation

No vendor fix or workaround currently provided.

OpenCVE Recommended Actions

  • Apply the upstream kernel patch that replaces IEEE802154_DUMP() with IEEE802154_DUMP_PRIV(), adding GENL_ADMIN_PERM to LLSEC dump entries.
  • If a kernel update is not yet available, disable the legacy IEEE802154 netlink family to block unprivileged dump requests, for example by unloading the module or using sysctl settings to disable Netlink handlers.
  • Add firewall or netfilter rules to block Generic Netlink messages targeting the IEEE802154_NL family as an additional interim protection.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on August 18, 2026 at 06:07 UTC.

Tracking

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Advisories

No advisories yet.

History

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 04:15:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Weaknesses CWE-200
CWE-284

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 00:15:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Weaknesses CWE-201
References
Metrics threat_severity

None

threat_severity

Important


Mon, 17 Aug 2026 20:30:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Weaknesses CWE-200
CWE-284

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 08:45:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Weaknesses CWE-200
CWE-284

Mon, 17 Aug 2026 06:00:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Metrics cvssV3_1

{'score': 7.1, 'vector': 'CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N'}


Sat, 15 Aug 2026 10:45:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
First Time appeared Linux kernel
Vendors & Products Linux kernel

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 08:15:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Weaknesses CWE-200
CWE-284

Sat, 15 Aug 2026 06:00:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Description In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ieee802154: admin-gate legacy LLSEC dump operations In net/ieee802154/netlink.c, the legacy IEEE802154_NL family ops table builds the LLSEC dump entries (LLSEC_LIST_KEY, LLSEC_LIST_DEV, LLSEC_LIST_DEVKEY, LLSEC_LIST_SECLEVEL) with IEEE802154_DUMP() which sets no .flags, so generic netlink runs them ungated. The modern nl802154 family admin-gates the equivalent reads via NL802154_CMD_GET_SEC_KEY and friends with .flags = GENL_ADMIN_PERM. Any local uid that can open AF_NETLINK / NETLINK_GENERIC can resolve the "802.15.4 MAC" family and dump LLSEC_LIST_KEY on any wpan netdev that has an LLSEC key installed; the dump handler writes the raw 16-byte AES-128 key bytes (IEEE802154_ATTR_LLSEC_KEY_BYTES, copied verbatim from struct ieee802154_llsec_key.key) into the reply. Recovering the AES key compromises 802.15.4 LLSEC link confidentiality and authenticity, since LLSEC uses CCM* and the same key authenticates and encrypts frames. Impact: any local uid with no capabilities can read the raw 16-byte AES-128 LLSEC key from the kernel keytable on any wpan netdev that has an administrator-installed LLSEC key, by issuing an LLSEC_LIST_KEY dump on the legacy IEEE802154_NL generic-netlink family. Introduce IEEE802154_DUMP_PRIV() mirroring IEEE802154_DUMP() but setting .flags = GENL_ADMIN_PERM, and use it for the four LLSEC dump entries. LIST_PHY and LIST_IFACE retain IEEE802154_DUMP() because the modern nl802154 family exposes their equivalents to unprivileged readers by design (NL802154_CMD_GET_WPAN_PHY and NL802154_CMD_GET_INTERFACE carry "can be retrieved by unprivileged users" annotations).
Title ieee802154: admin-gate legacy LLSEC dump operations
First Time appeared Linux
Linux linux Kernel
CPEs cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
Vendors & Products Linux
Linux linux Kernel
References

Subscriptions

Linux Kernel Linux Kernel
cve-icon MITRE

Status: PUBLISHED

Assigner: Linux

Published:

Updated: 2026-08-17T05:39:46.666Z

Reserved: 2026-08-09T03:40:39.902Z

Link: CVE-2026-72049

cve-icon Vulnrichment

No data.

cve-icon NVD

Status : Received

Published: 2026-08-15T06:21:14.190

Modified: 2026-08-17T06:18:02.973

Link: CVE-2026-72049

cve-icon Redhat

Severity : Important

Publid Date: 2026-08-15T00:00:00Z

Links: CVE-2026-72049 - Bugzilla

cve-icon OpenCVE Enrichment

Updated: 2026-08-18T06:15:04Z

Weaknesses
  • CWE-201

    Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data