CVE-2026-23281
Analyzed
Analyzed - Analysis Complete
Use-After-Free in Linux Kernel Libertass WiFi Driver Timers
Publication date: 2026-03-25
Last updated on: 2026-05-22
Assigner: kernel.org
Description
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
wifi: libertas: fix use-after-free in lbs_free_adapter()
The lbs_free_adapter() function uses timer_delete() (non-synchronous)
for both command_timer and tx_lockup_timer before the structure is
freed. This is incorrect because timer_delete() does not wait for
any running timer callback to complete.
If a timer callback is executing when lbs_free_adapter() is called,
the callback will access freed memory since lbs_cfg_free() frees the
containing structure immediately after lbs_free_adapter() returns.
Both timer callbacks (lbs_cmd_timeout_handler and lbs_tx_lockup_handler)
access priv->driver_lock, priv->cur_cmd, priv->dev, and other fields,
which would all be use-after-free violations.
Use timer_delete_sync() instead to ensure any running timer callback
has completed before returning.
This bug was introduced in commit 8f641d93c38a ("libertas: detect TX
lockups and reset hardware") where del_timer() was used instead of
del_timer_sync() in the cleanup path. The command_timer has had the
same issue since the driver was first written.
CVSS Scores
EPSS Scores
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Meta Information
Affected Vendors & Products
| Vendor | Product | Version / Range |
|---|---|---|
| linux | linux_kernel | From 6.19 (inc) to 6.19.7 (exc) |
| linux | linux_kernel | 7.0 |
| linux | linux_kernel | From 6.13 (inc) to 6.18.17 (exc) |
| linux | linux_kernel | From 6.2 (inc) to 6.6.130 (exc) |
| linux | linux_kernel | From 5.11 (inc) to 5.15.203 (exc) |
| linux | linux_kernel | From 5.16 (inc) to 6.1.167 (exc) |
| linux | linux_kernel | From 6.7 (inc) to 6.12.78 (exc) |
| linux | linux_kernel | From 2.6.24 (inc) to 5.10.253 (exc) |
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
CWE
KEV
| CWE ID | Description |
|---|---|
| CWE-416 | The product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory "belongs" to the code that operates on the new pointer. |
