CVE-2023-54174
Unknown Unknown - Not Provided

NULL Pointer Dereference in Linux vfio Causes Kernel Crash

Publication date: 2025-12-30

Last updated on: 2025-12-30

Assigner: kernel.org

Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: vfio: Fix NULL pointer dereference caused by uninitialized group->iommufd group->iommufd is not initialized for the iommufd_ctx_put() [20018.331541] BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000000 [20018.377508] RIP: 0010:iommufd_ctx_put+0x5/0x10 [iommufd] ... [20018.476483] Call Trace: [20018.479214] <TASK> [20018.481555] vfio_group_fops_unl_ioctl+0x506/0x690 [vfio] [20018.487586] __x64_sys_ioctl+0x6a/0xb0 [20018.491773] ? trace_hardirqs_on+0xc5/0xe0 [20018.496347] do_syscall_64+0x67/0x90 [20018.500340] entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x4b/0xb5

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Meta Information

Published
2025-12-30
Last Modified
2025-12-30
Generated
2026-07-06
AI Q&A
2025-12-30
EPSS Evaluated
2026-07-05
NVD
CVE-2023-54174
EUVD
EUVD-2023-60467

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 1 associated CPE
Vendor Product Version / Range
linux linux_kernel *

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Exploitability

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CWE ID Description
CWE-UNKNOWN

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Executive Summary

This vulnerability is a NULL pointer dereference in the Linux kernel's vfio component. It occurs because the group->iommufd pointer is not initialized before being used in the iommufd_ctx_put() function, which can cause the kernel to crash or behave unexpectedly.

Detection Guidance

Detection can be done by monitoring the system logs for kernel NULL pointer dereference errors related to iommufd. Specifically, look for messages similar to: '[timestamp] BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000000' and call traces involving 'iommufd_ctx_put' and 'vfio_group_fops_unl_ioctl'. You can use the command 'dmesg | grep -i iommufd' or 'journalctl -k | grep -i iommufd' to find such logs.

Mitigation Strategies

Immediate mitigation involves updating the Linux kernel to a version where the vfio NULL pointer dereference caused by uninitialized group->iommufd is fixed. Until then, avoid using features or modules that trigger the vulnerable code path, such as vfio with iommufd. Monitoring for kernel crashes and applying kernel patches as soon as they are available is recommended.

Impact Analysis

The impact of this vulnerability is that it can cause a kernel crash (NULL pointer dereference), potentially leading to a denial of service or system instability.

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