# CVE-2023-54146: x86/kexec: Fix double-free of elf header buffer

> A double-free vulnerability in the Linux kernel's kexec subsystem allows local attackers to cause denial of service or potentially escalate privileges.

- **Severity:** Not scored
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 24 Dec 2025
- **Updated:** 23 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2023-54146, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-54146, GHSA-wg2w-8j36-3rqh, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-54146

## What is CVE-2023-54146?

CVE-2023-54146 is an use after free vulnerability in Linux, published on 24 Dec 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:

x86/kexec: Fix double-free of elf header buffer

After

  b3e34a47f989 ("x86/kexec: fix memory leak of elf header buffer"),

freeing image->elf_headers in the error path of crash_load_segments()
is not needed because kimage_file_post_load_cleanup() will take
care of that later. And not clearing it could result in a double-free.

Drop the superfluous vfree() call at the error path of
crash_load_segments().

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-54146?


## How do I fix CVE-2023-54146?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2023-54146 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-54146 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-54146 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-54146 is an use after free vulnerability in Linux, published on 24 Dec 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-2023-54146 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux. 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-2023-54146/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-54146/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-54146
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-54146
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-54146

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-54146/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.