macsec: initialize SecY before registering the netdevice
Creating a MACsec device with MAC offload over an LRO-capable lower
device triggers a warning in rtmsg_ifinfo_build_skb() when IPv4
forwarding is enabled by default.
register_netdevice() invokes inetdev_init(), which disables LRO and emits
a NETDEV_FEAT_CHANGE notification. This reaches macsec_fill_info() before
macsec_add_dev() initializes the SecY. key_len is still zero, so
macsec_fill_info() returns -EMSGSIZE and trips the WARN_ON in
rtmsg_ifinfo_build_skb(), even though the skb has enough space.
Even without the warning, notifications during registration can report
uninitialized SecY attributes, including the SCI. This ordering has existed
since the driver was introduced.
Initialize the SecY and apply the new-link attributes before registration.
Move MAC address inheritance into macsec_newlink() so the SCI can also be
initialized before registration-time notifications report it. Move the
per-CPU statistics and metadata destination allocation into ndo_init(),
and release partial allocations on failure.
Analysis
Analysis and contextual insights are available on OpenCVE Cloud.
Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).
| Vendor | Product | Default status | Versions | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | unaffected |
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| Linux | Linux | affected |
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No data.
No data.
No data available yet.
No vendor fix or workaround currently provided.
Additional remediation guidance may be available on OpenCVE Cloud.
Tracking
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Fri, 23 Oct 2026 12:30:00 +0000
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Description | In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: macsec: initialize SecY before registering the netdevice Creating a MACsec device with MAC offload over an LRO-capable lower device triggers a warning in rtmsg_ifinfo_build_skb() when IPv4 forwarding is enabled by default. register_netdevice() invokes inetdev_init(), which disables LRO and emits a NETDEV_FEAT_CHANGE notification. This reaches macsec_fill_info() before macsec_add_dev() initializes the SecY. key_len is still zero, so macsec_fill_info() returns -EMSGSIZE and trips the WARN_ON in rtmsg_ifinfo_build_skb(), even though the skb has enough space. Even without the warning, notifications during registration can report uninitialized SecY attributes, including the SCI. This ordering has existed since the driver was introduced. Initialize the SecY and apply the new-link attributes before registration. Move MAC address inheritance into macsec_newlink() so the SCI can also be initialized before registration-time notifications report it. Move the per-CPU statistics and metadata destination allocation into ndo_init(), and release partial allocations on failure. | |
| Title | macsec: initialize SecY before registering the netdevice | |
| First Time appeared |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| CPEs | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | |
| Vendors & Products |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
|
| References |
|
MITRE
Status: PUBLISHED
Assigner: Linux
Published:
Updated: 2026-10-23T12:08:11.551Z
Reserved: 2026-09-25T10:25:14.380Z
Link: CVE-2026-98929
Vulnrichment
No data.
NVD
Status : Received
Published: 2026-10-23T13:17:13.673
Modified: 2026-10-23T13:17:13.673
Link: CVE-2026-98929
Redhat
No data.
OpenCVE Enrichment
No data.
No weakness.