# CVE-2026-98922: linux: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:  net: emac: move setting of netops to fix crash...

CVE-2026-98922 is fixed in linux on 1 platform by DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98922 (version 7.2.9-1), released October 24, 2026. It is not reported as exploited. Patch Radar priority: Routine.

- Web page: https://patchblox.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-98922
- Priority: Routine
- CVSS: n/a
- EPSS: 0.0016
- CISA KEV: not listed
- Exploited (vendor report): no
- Publicly disclosed: no
- Published: Oct 23, 2026

## Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:  net: emac: move setting of netops to fix crash  fixes the following crash on driver initialization:  |BUG: Kernel NULL pointer dereference on read at 0x00000158 |Faulting instruction address: 0xc0566b40 |Oops: Kernel access of bad area, sig: 11 [#1] |BE PAGE_SIZE=4K  PowerPC 44x Platform |Modules linked in: |CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 1 Comm: swapper/0 Tainted: GW 7.3.0-rc3+ #1 |Tainted: [W]=WARN |Hardware name: MyBook Live APM821XX 0x12c41c83 PowerPC 44x Platform |NIP:  c0566b40 LR: c05648f8 CTR: c04c1e9c |REGS: c1053a20 TRAP: 0300   Tainted: GW  (7.3.0-rc3+) |MSR:  0002b000 <CE,EE,FP,ME>  CR: 24008808  XER: 00000000 |DEAR: 00000158 ESR: 00000000 |GPR00: c05648f8 c1053b10 c1063600 c1030000 c5ab3000 00000000 [...] |GPR08: 00000002 00000000 00000000 c1053b40 84002808 00000000 [...] |GPR16: cfffd210 00000002 c0beafcc cfffc960 00000000 c1030644 [...] |GPR24: c0beafbc c1037000 00000000 0000000a 00000000 c1030000 [...] |NIP [c0566b40] phy_link_topo_add_phy+0x2c/0x1d0 |LR [c05648f8] phy_attach_direct+0x1a4/0x368 |Call Trace: |[c1053b10] [c0811e04] klist_put+0x54/0xb4 (unreliable) |[c1053b40] [c05648f8] phy_attach_direct+0x1a4/0x368 |[c1053b70] [c0564ae8] phy_connect_direct+0x2c/0x60 |[c1053b90] [c056c7a8] of_phy_connect+0x50/0x74 |[c1053bc0] [c0572a88] emac_probe+0xd50/0x119c |[c1053c90] [c04cb770] platform_probe+0x74/0xa4 |[c1053cb0] [c04c8f08] really_probe+0x120/0x2b0 |[c1053cd0] [c04c9254] __driver_probe_device+0x1bc/0x1fc |[c1053d00] [c04c9334] driver_probe_device+0x38/0xa8 |[c1053d30] [c04c9560] __driver_attach+0xf4/0x10c |[c1053d50] [c04c6af8] bus_for_each_dev+0x68/0xd0 |[c1053d90] [c04c7c34] bus_add_driver+0xcc/0x1ec |[c1053dc0] [c04c9f6c] driver_register+0xcc/0x110 |[c1053de0] [c0aa3f40] emac_init+0x1c4/0x200  This bug showed up starting with v7.3-rc1. At the NIP in phy_link_topo_add_phy() is a netdev_need_ops_lock() check. This was added by the following commit ded86da4bbb7 ("net: ethtool: relax ethnl_req_get_phydev() locking assertion")  The bug shows up because at the time of_phy_connect() was called, the netdev_ops were *not yet* determined. My fix is to move the code that sets netdev_ops+commac.ops+ethtool_ops further up as emac_init_config() derives that by looking at the device-tree and sets the required dev->phy_mode accordingly.  During review, the Sashiko bot's AI stated that the commac assignment became a dead store. Great catch! To keep the original behavior as-is, one mentioned option "set dev->commac.ops = &emac_commac_ops only in the non-gige case?" sounded like a great plan. So the dev->commac.ops assignment for the non-gige-case moves into the else block.  This patch was tested on a WD MyBook Live (RGMII). the device now works again.

## Where it's fixed

| Platform | Product | Fixed in | Fix | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | linux Debian 14 | 7.2.9-1 | [DEBIAN-CVE-2026-98922](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/debian-cve-2026-98922.md) | Oct 24, 2026 |

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Data as of 2026-11-08T13:06:02Z UTC. Source: Patchblox Patch Radar (https://patchblox.com/security/patch-radar). Patchblox finds out-of-date software on Windows, macOS and Linux and updates it through release rings: https://patchblox.com/demo

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