CVE-2023-1902
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedThe bluetooth HCI host layer logic not clearing a global reference to a state pointer after handling connection events may allow a malicious HCI Controller to cause the use of a dangling reference in the host layer, leading to a crash (DoS) or potential RCE on the Host layer.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceA dangling pointer vulnerability exists in the Bluetooth HCI host layer where a global reference to a state pointer is not cleared after handling connection events. A malicious HCI Controller can exploit this to cause the host layer to use the dangling reference, leading to a crash (DoS) or potentially remote code execution.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data<= 3.3.0CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Adjacent
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Identify the Zephyr version in your environmentCheck the Zephyr version file (version.h or west.yml) or run 'git describe --tags' in the Zephyr repository directory. Compare against the affected range <= 3.3.0Affected if Your Zephyr version is 3.3.0 or lower
-
Verify Bluetooth HCI host is enabledCheck your Kconfig configuration for CONFIG_BT_HCI_HOST=y or look at your build configuration files (defconfig, .config)Affected if CONFIG_BT_HCI_HOST is set and Bluetooth host functionality is compiled into your build
-
Confirm HCI connection event handling code is presentExamine the Bluetooth HCI source files (typically in subsys/bluetooth/host/hci.c or similar) for the presence of connection event handling code that uses a global state pointer without clearing it after processingAffected if Your build includes the vulnerable HCI connection event handling code path in the host layer
You are affected if you are running Zephyr version 3.3.0 or earlier with Bluetooth HCI host enabled and the vulnerable connection event handling code is present in your build.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
dbcve · scopedThe fix requires clearing the global reference to the state pointer after connection events are handled in the HCI host layer code, ensuring the pointer is invalidated before the underlying memory becomes invalid.
Zephyr RTOS 3.4.0 or later
- 1. Identify all Zephyr-based products using Bluetooth HCI host layer in version 3.3.0 or earlier
- 2. Update Zephyr RTOS to version 3.4.0 or later which contains the fix for the dangling pointer issue
- 3. Rebuild the firmware with the updated Zephyr version
- 4. Flash the new firmware to affected devices
- 5. Verify Bluetooth connectivity functions correctly after the update
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,080.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-1902 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-1902 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data