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Fencer Vulns
medium 6.5

CVE-2026-19738 json

Retained RX node leak and reachable assertion in Bluetooth Controller CIS Create procedures

published 2026-10-11 28 d ago modified 2026-11-04 4 d ago also EUVD-2026-97107

cvss
6.5
version 3.1, CNA
cisa kev
Not listed
not in CISA's catalog
epss
0.1%
EPSS 0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days, percentile 1%
public exploits
0
none known

Summary

The Bluetooth Link Layer Control Procedure (LLCP) implementation for Connected Isochronous Stream (CIS) creation retains an RX node (ctx->node_ref.rx, marked NODE_RX_TYPE_RETAIN) so it can later be reused as the host notification — on the peripheral while awaiting the Host's reply to an LL_CIS_REQ, and on the central for the whole duration of a locally initiated CIS Create. In subsys/bluetooth/controller/ll_sw/ull_llcp_cc.c, the "invalid PDU received" paths of llcp_rp_cc_rx() and llcp_lp_cc_rx() terminated the connection and completed the procedure without releasing that retained node, breaking the invariant checked in llcp_lr_check_done() and llcp_rr_check_done() and orphaning the node's memory.

A peer device within radio range can reach this with a single extra LL Control PDU on an unauthenticated, unencrypted ACL link. Against a peripheral, the attacker sends a valid LL_CIS_REQ and then, before the Host replies, any unrelated LL Control PDU (for example LL_VERSION_IND), which ull_cp_rx() routes into the active remote procedure. Against a central performing a CIS Create, a malicious peripheral answers with LL_UNKNOWN_RSP for CIS_REQ, which is dispatched into the active local procedure. No pairing, encryption or user interaction is required; the code is compiled in when CONFIG_BT_CTLR_PERIPHERAL_ISO or CONFIG_BT_CTLR_CENTRAL_ISO is enabled.

In default builds (CONFIG_BT_CTLR_ASSERT_DEBUG is default y) the retained-node assertion fires immediately, producing a controller fatal error and, typically, a system reset from one injected PDU. With the development assertions disabled, each attempt permanently loses one node from the controller's small LL notification pool (LL_PDU_RX_CNT, 2 * CONFIG_BT_CTLR_LLCP_CONN) together with its memq_link_t; repeating the connect-attack-reconnect cycle exhausts the pool, after which notification allocation always fails, RX flow control stalls, and the non-disableable LL_ASSERT_ERR() in llcp_lp_cc_flush() faults. The impact is limited to availability — the leaked node is orphaned, never reused or double-freed — and recovery requires a reboot.

Patch / fix

  • zephyrproject zephyr 4.3.2, 4.5.0

CISA SSVC

Exploitation
none
Automatable
no
Technical impact
partial
Assessed
23 d ago

Exploit prediction

0.10% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 1% of all scored CVEs (FIRST EPSS, 2026-11-08).

CVSS scores

assigned by version score vector
CNA 3.1 6.5 CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Affected products

  • zephyrproject zephyr

Classification

Weakness
  • CWE-401 Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime

References

Sources

Fencer Vulns keeps one entry per vulnerability: the CVE id wins, then GHSA, and records that alias each other are merged, except that two CVEs always keep separate entries. The same data is available as JSON.