# CVE-2023-53594: driver core: fix resource leak in device_add()

> A resource leak in the Linux kernel device_add function can cause module loading failures, leading to denial of service.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 4 Oct 2025
- **Updated:** 23 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2023-53594, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-53594, GHSA-h86p-mcmj-rh92, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-11-CVE-2023-53594, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-53594

## What is CVE-2023-53594?

CVE-2023-53594 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 4 Oct 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

driver core: fix resource leak in device_add()

When calling kobject_add() failed in device_add(), it will call
cleanup_glue_dir() to free resource. But in kobject_add(),
dev->kobj.parent has been set to NULL. This will cause resource leak.

The process is as follows:
device_add()
	get_device_parent()
		class_dir_create_and_add()
			kobject_add()		//kobject_get()
	...
	dev->kobj.parent = kobj;
	...
	kobject_add()		//failed, but set dev->kobj.parent = NULL
	...
	glue_dir = get_glue_dir(dev)	//glue_dir = NULL, and goto
					//"Error" label
	...
	cleanup_glue_dir()	//becaues glue_dir is NULL, not call
				//kobject_put()

The preceding problem may cause insmod mac80211_hwsim.ko to failed.
sysfs: cannot create duplicate filename '/devices/virtual/mac80211_hwsim'
Call Trace:
<TASK>
dump_stack_lvl+0x8e/0xd1
sysfs_warn_dup.cold+0x1c/0x29
sysfs_create_dir_ns+0x224/0x280
kobject_add_internal+0x2aa/0x880
kobject_add+0x135/0x1a0
get_device_parent+0x3d7/0x590
device_add+0x2aa/0x1cb0
device_create_groups_vargs+0x1eb/0x260
device_create+0xdc/0x110
mac80211_hwsim_new_radio+0x31e/0x4790 [mac80211_hwsim]
init_mac80211_hwsim+0x48d/0x1000 [mac80211_hwsim]
do_one_initcall+0x10f/0x630
do_init_module+0x19f/0x5e0
load_module+0x64b7/0x6eb0
__do_sys_finit_module+0x140/0x200
do_syscall_64+0x35/0x80
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x46/0xb0
</TASK>
kobject_add_internal failed for mac80211_hwsim with -EEXIST, don't try to
register things with the same name in the same directory.

Weakness: CWE-401 (Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-53594?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-53594?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2023-53594 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-53594 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-53594 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-53594 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 4 Oct 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-53594 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux kernel. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-53594/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-53594/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-53594
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-53594
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-53594

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-53594/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.