# CVE-2026-96416: Wireshark IEEE 802.11 protocol dissector crash

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-96416-ieee-802-11-protocol-dissector-crash-in-4-6-0-to-4-6-8-and-4-4-0  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-09-29. Updated: 2026-09-29  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-96416 · Severity: medium · CVSS 5.5 · Published 2026-09-29

Wireshark, a network packet analyzer used by IT professionals to diagnose network issues, contains a flaw in its 802.11 wireless protocol decoder that can crash the application when processing specially crafted wireless frames. An attacker could exploit this by injecting a malicious wireless packet into a network or providing a malformed capture file, causing a denial of service that prevents analysis of network traffic. The vulnerability only affects users who have enabled 802.11 decryption with a configured key, though this is standard practice for wireless security analysis.

Technologies: [Wireshark Foundation Wireshark](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/wireshark-foundation-wireshark). Vendors: [Wireshark Foundation](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/wireshark-foundation).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-96416 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-96416 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-96416?** Medium severity, with a CVSS score of 5.5, published 29 September 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** Wireshark Foundation Wireshark 4.6.0 to 4.6.8, 4.4.0 to 4.4.18.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-96416?** A patch was published on 2026-09-29: versions 4.6.9 and 4.4.19 Junglewise finds every place you run it, drafts the upgrade and applies it once you approve.

**How is CVE-2026-96416 attacked?** It is attacked over the network or from the adjacent network.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-96416?** Check whether you run Wireshark Foundation Wireshark at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## Technical details

The vulnerability exists in the Dot11DecryptFtMicCheck() function in the IEEE 802.11 Fast BSS Transition dissector, where a length desynchronization between two FTE (Fast Transition Element) elements allows an integer underflow: the function retrieves the FTE element length from one packet store and the MIC length from another, permitting a crafted frame with multiple FTE elements to cause fte_len - 4 - mic_len to underflow (e.g., 20 - 4 - 24 = -8). This negative value is cast to size_t and passed to gcry_mac_write(), causing an out-of-bounds read of approximately 2^64 bytes starting past the allocated buffer boundary. The vulnerability requires decryption to be enabled and a key configured, but needs no authentication, association, or key knowledge—any single unauthenticated management frame triggers the crash before MIC verification.

## Affected products

- Wireshark Foundation Wireshark 4.6.0 to 4.6.8, 4.4.0 to 4.4.18

## Timeline

- 2026-09-23: disclosed
- 2026-09-29: patched: versions 4.6.9 and 4.4.19

## References

- [https://gitlab.com/wireshark/wireshark/-/work_items/21564](https://gitlab.com/wireshark/wireshark/-/work_items/21564)
- [https://www.wireshark.org/security/wnpa-sec-2026-109.html](https://www.wireshark.org/security/wnpa-sec-2026-109.html)

## Related threats

- [Wireshark X11 dissector out-of-bounds heap read](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-96423-x11-protocol-dissector-crash-in-4-6-0-to-4-6-8-and-4-4-0-to-4-4)
- [Wireshark Frame protocol metadissector crash](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-96422-frame-protocol-metadissector-crash-in-4-6-0-to-4-6-8-and-4-4-0-to)
- [Wireshark Toshiba file parser crash](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-96420-toshiba-file-parser-crash-in-4-6-0-to-4-6-8-and-4-4-0-to-4-4-18)
- [Wireshark profile import path traversal code execution](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-96419-profile-import-crash-in-4-6-0-to-4-6-8-and-4-4-0-to-4-4-18-allows)
- [Wireshark TIFF dissector infinite loop](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-96418-tiff-protocol-dissector-infinite-loop-in-4-6-0-to-4-6-8-and-4-4-0)