# CVE-2023-54313: ovl: fix null pointer dereference in ovl_get_acl_rcu()

> A local attacker can trigger a null pointer dereference in the Linux kernel's overlayfs, causing a system crash.

- **Severity:** Not scored
- **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:** 30 Dec 2025
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2023-54313, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-54313, GHSA-5fqh-8g63-525q, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-54313

## What is CVE-2023-54313?

CVE-2023-54313 is a vulnerability in Linux, published on 30 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:

ovl: fix null pointer dereference in ovl_get_acl_rcu()

Following process:
         P1                     P2
 path_openat
  link_path_walk
   may_lookup
    inode_permission(rcu)
     ovl_permission
      acl_permission_check
       check_acl
        get_cached_acl_rcu
	 ovl_get_inode_acl
	  realinode = ovl_inode_real(ovl_inode)
	                      drop_cache
		               __dentry_kill(ovl_dentry)
				iput(ovl_inode)
		                 ovl_destroy_inode(ovl_inode)
		                  dput(oi->__upperdentry)
		                   dentry_kill(upperdentry)
		                    dentry_unlink_inode
				     upperdentry->d_inode = NULL
	    ovl_inode_upper
	     upperdentry = ovl_i_dentry_upper(ovl_inode)
	     d_inode(upperdentry) // returns NULL
	  IS_POSIXACL(realinode) // NULL pointer dereference
, will trigger an null pointer dereference at realinode:
  [  205.472797] BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address:
                 0000000000000028
  [  205.476701] CPU: 2 PID: 2713 Comm: ls Not tainted
                 6.3.0-12064-g2edfa098e750-dirty #1216
  [  205.478754] RIP: 0010:do_ovl_get_acl+0x5d/0x300
  [  205.489584] Call Trace:
  [  205.489812]  <TASK>
  [  205.490014]  ovl_get_inode_acl+0x26/0x30
  [  205.490466]  get_cached_acl_rcu+0x61/0xa0
  [  205.490908]  generic_permission+0x1bf/0x4e0
  [  205.491447]  ovl_permission+0x79/0x1b0
  [  205.491917]  inode_permission+0x15e/0x2c0
  [  205.492425]  link_path_walk+0x115/0x550
  [  205.493311]  path_lookupat.isra.0+0xb2/0x200
  [  205.493803]  filename_lookup+0xda/0x240
  [  205.495747]  vfs_fstatat+0x7b/0xb0

Fetch a reproducer in [Link].

Use the helper ovl_i_path_realinode() to get realinode and then do
non-nullptr checking.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-54313?


## How do I fix CVE-2023-54313?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2023-54313 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-54313 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-54313 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-54313 is a vulnerability in Linux, published on 30 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-2023-54313 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-2023-54313/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-54313/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-54313
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-54313
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-54313

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-54313/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.