# CVE-2023-54321: driver core: fix potential null-ptr-deref in device_add()

> A null pointer dereference in the Linux kernel device_add function can cause a system crash, requiring a kernel patch to fix.

- **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:** 30 Dec 2025
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2023-54321, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-54321, GHSA-vfgj-f4g9-xh2h, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-54321

## What is CVE-2023-54321?

CVE-2023-54321 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, 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:

driver core: fix potential null-ptr-deref in device_add()

I got the following null-ptr-deref report while doing fault injection test:

BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000058
CPU: 2 PID: 278 Comm: 37-i2c-ds2482 Tainted: G    B   W        N 6.1.0-rc3+
RIP: 0010:klist_put+0x2d/0xd0
Call Trace:
 <TASK>
 klist_remove+0xf1/0x1c0
 device_release_driver_internal+0x196/0x210
 bus_remove_device+0x1bd/0x240
 device_add+0xd3d/0x1100
 w1_add_master_device+0x476/0x490 [wire]
 ds2482_probe+0x303/0x3e0 [ds2482]

This is how it happened:

w1_alloc_dev()
  // The dev->driver is set to w1_master_driver.
  memcpy(&dev->dev, device, sizeof(struct device));
  device_add()
    bus_add_device()
    dpm_sysfs_add() // It fails, calls bus_remove_device.

    // error path
    bus_remove_device()
      // The dev->driver is not null, but driver is not bound.
      __device_release_driver()
        klist_remove(&dev->p->knode_driver) <-- It causes null-ptr-deref.

    // normal path
    bus_probe_device() // It's not called yet.
      device_bind_driver()

If dev->driver is set, in the error path after calling bus_add_device()
in device_add(), bus_remove_device() is called, then the device will be
detached from driver. But device_bind_driver() is not called yet, so it
causes null-ptr-deref while access the 'knode_driver'. To fix this, set
dev->driver to null in the error path before calling bus_remove_device().

Weakness: CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-54321?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-54321?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2023-54321 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-54321 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-2023-54321 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-54321 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, 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-2023-54321 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-2023-54321/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-54321/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-54321
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-54321
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-54321

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-54321/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.