# CVE-2026-23041: bnxt_en: Fix NULL pointer crash in bnxt_ptp_enable during error cleanup

> A NULL pointer dereference in the bnxt_en driver causes a kernel crash during initialization failure, leading to denial of service.

- **Severity:** Not scored
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 4 Feb 2026
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2026-23041, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-23041, GHSA-f2r6-xf7j-hxvf, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-23041

## What is CVE-2026-23041?

CVE-2026-23041 is a vulnerability in Linux, published on 4 Feb 2026. 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:

bnxt_en: Fix NULL pointer crash in bnxt_ptp_enable during error cleanup

When bnxt_init_one() fails during initialization (e.g.,
bnxt_init_int_mode returns -ENODEV), the error path calls
bnxt_free_hwrm_resources() which destroys the DMA pool and sets
bp->hwrm_dma_pool to NULL. Subsequently, bnxt_ptp_clear() is called,
which invokes ptp_clock_unregister().

Since commit a60fc3294a37 ("ptp: rework ptp_clock_unregister() to
disable events"), ptp_clock_unregister() now calls
ptp_disable_all_events(), which in turn invokes the driver's .enable()
callback (bnxt_ptp_enable()) to disable PTP events before completing the
unregistration.

bnxt_ptp_enable() attempts to send HWRM commands via bnxt_ptp_cfg_pin()
and bnxt_ptp_cfg_event(), both of which call hwrm_req_init(). This
function tries to allocate from bp->hwrm_dma_pool, causing a NULL
pointer dereference:

  bnxt_en 0000:01:00.0 (unnamed net_device) (uninitialized): bnxt_init_int_mode err: ffffffed
  KASAN: null-ptr-deref in range [0x0000000000000028-0x000000000000002f]
  Call Trace:
   __hwrm_req_init (drivers/net/ethernet/broadcom/bnxt/bnxt_hwrm.c:72)
   bnxt_ptp_enable (drivers/net/ethernet/broadcom/bnxt/bnxt_ptp.c:323 drivers/net/ethernet/broadcom/bnxt/bnxt_ptp.c:517)
   ptp_disable_all_events (drivers/ptp/ptp_chardev.c:66)
   ptp_clock_unregister (drivers/ptp/ptp_clock.c:518)
   bnxt_ptp_clear (drivers/net/ethernet/broadcom/bnxt/bnxt_ptp.c:1134)
   bnxt_init_one (drivers/net/ethernet/broadcom/bnxt/bnxt.c:16889)

Lines are against commit f8f9c1f4d0c7 ("Linux 6.19-rc3")

Fix this by clearing and unregistering ptp (bnxt_ptp_clear()) before
freeing HWRM resources.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-23041?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-23041?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-23041 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-23041 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-23041 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-23041 is a vulnerability in Linux, published on 4 Feb 2026. 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-2026-23041 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-2026-23041/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-23041/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-23041
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-23041
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-23041

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-23041/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.