CVE-2026-80742

A flaw was found in the Linux kernel's af_packet (Address Family Packet) component. A local attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending specially crafted zero-byte packets through the TPACKET ring buffer on devices without a hard header. This improper handling of zero-length packets can cause a kernel warning and potentially lead to a system crash, resulting in a Denial of Service (DoS).

This vulnerability is rated as having a Low impact because exploitation requires local privileges, specifically the CAP_NET_RAW capability or access to unprivileged user namespaces. Under default Red Hat Enterprise Linux configurations, standard unprivileged users cannot open packet sockets. Furthermore, the condition triggers a non-fatal kernel warning, which causes a denial of service only on systems explicitly configured to panic on warnings.

The CVSS score(s) listed for this vulnerability do not reflect the associated product's status, and are included for informational purposes to better understand the severity of this vulnerability.