A race condition exists in the Linux kernel driver octeontx2-vf during the probe and removal phases. The driver initializes a workqueue after registering the network device, so if ndo_set_rx_mode queues work before the workqueue is ready, the kernel may attempt to execute a task on a NULL workqueue, leading to a kernel panic. The resulting crash denies service to the entire system.

Systems running the Linux kernel that load the octeontx2-vf driver are affected. No specific kernel versions are enumerated in the available data, so the vulnerability applies to all deployments that include this driver.

The EPSS score is less than 1%, indicating a very low probability of exploitation in the wild, and the vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog. The lack of a public CVSS score limits precise severity quantification, but kernel crashes are high impact. The likely attack vector is local; an attacker with sufficient privileges to influence the driver’s probe or removal sequence could trigger the crash, resulting in a denial‑of‑service.