---
id: CVE-2026-98549
title: >-
  kernel: tcp: prevent collapsing skbs across boundary in rtx queue
  (CVE-2026-98549)
summary: >-
  A flaw was found in the Linux kernel's TCP subsystem. When a TCP connection
  transitions to hardware-assisted encryption, data packets queued after the
  transition can be improperly merged with unencrypted packets in the
  retransmission queue…
severity: medium
cvss: 4.8
cvssVector: 'CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:L'
cvssSource: vendor
cwe: CWE-319
vendor: Red Hat
product: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
affected:
  - enterprise_linux 10
  - enterprise_linux 8
  - enterprise_linux 9
  - openshift_container_platform 4
published: '2026-10-18'
updated: '2026-10-24'
sourceUpdated: '2026-10-24T14:23:40+00:00'
source: CSAF
sourceUrl: 'https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-98549.json'
references:
  - url: >-
      https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-98549.json
  - url: 'https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-98549'
  - url: 'https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2555002'
  - url: 'https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-98549'
  - url: 'https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-98549'
  - url: >-
      https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/security/vulns.git/plain/cve/published/2026/CVE-2026-98549.mbox
  - url: 'https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9e2a2f98e8c0197108c6d97a1fa43bfd89071c30'
  - url: 'https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1ae7aee395245874d797890380d9192bd858fb7e'
  - url: 'https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/7ba87509c54cd519e7ed362e0c85e8431f066a18'
  - url: 'https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/08e835f5ec6e261c79d8c39f8618b3af29e3b0da'
  - url: 'https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/fc6d80eb504458d6416b75a94188b268c95c6533'
tags:
  - csaf
  - vex
  - red-hat
  - cve.org
  - score-dispute
epss: 0.00391
epssPercentile: 0.33042
scores:
  vendor: 4.8
  cna: 9.1
ingestedAt: '2026-10-18T15:45:12.265Z'
---

## Overview

A flaw was found in the Linux kernel's TCP subsystem. When a TCP connection transitions to hardware-assisted encryption, data packets queued after the transition can be improperly merged with unencrypted packets in the retransmission queue. This issue may allow an attacker on the network to obtain sensitive data transmitted in cleartext (information disclosure) or cause affected connections to stall, resulting in a denial of service (DoS).

## Vendor advisories

- **Red Hat VEX** · Moderate · affected: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9, Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 · no fix planned: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9, Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 · updated 2026-10-24 · [vex](https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-98549.json)

**kernel: tcp: prevent collapsing skbs across boundary in rtx queue** — rated Moderate by Red Hat. Released 2026-10-18, updated 2026-10-24.

Affected:

- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
- Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4

No fix planned:

- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
- Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4

Not affected:

- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7

## Remediation

Fix deferred