Linux KernelOperating system · Linux
CVE-2023-52449
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 · uneditedIn the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mtd: Fix gluebi NULL pointer dereference caused by ftl notifier If both ftl.ko and gluebi.ko are loaded, the notifier of ftl triggers NULL pointer dereference when trying to access ‘gluebi->desc’ in gluebi_read(). ubi_gluebi_init ubi_register_volume_notifier ubi_enumerate_volumes ubi_notify_all gluebi_notify nb->notifier_call() gluebi_create mtd_device_register mtd_device_parse_register add_mtd_device blktrans_notify_add not->add() ftl_add_mtd tr->add_mtd() scan_header mtd_read mtd_read_oob mtd_read_oob_std gluebi_read mtd->read() gluebi->desc - NULL Detailed reproduction information available at the Link [1], In the normal case, obtain gluebi->desc in the gluebi_get_device(), and access gluebi->desc in the gluebi_read(). However, gluebi_get_device() is not executed in advance in the ftl_add_mtd() process, which leads to NULL pointer dereference. The solution for the gluebi module is to run jffs2 on the UBI volume without considering working with ftl or mtdblock [2]. Therefore, this problem can be avoided by preventing gluebi from creating the mtdblock device after creating mtd partition of the type MTD_UBIVOLUME.
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 analysisThe code follows a pointer that is null, crashing the process. An attacker who can reliably trigger it turns the crash into a denial of service. The fix is checking for null before use and handling the failure path gracefully.
General guidance for the null pointer dereference class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →
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
Linux KernelOperating system
>= 2.6.31, < 4.19.306>= 4.20, < 5.4.268>= 5.5.0, < 5.10.209>= 5.11.0, < 5.15.148>= 5.16.0, < 6.1.75>= 6.2.0, < 6.6.14>= 6.7.0, < 6.7.2CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
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 · scoped4.19.3065.4.2685.10.209
Linux kernel >= 4.19.306, >= 5.4.268, >= 5.10.209, or >= 5.15.148 (depending on your branch)
- Identify the currently running Linux kernel version using `uname -r`
- Determine which version branch your kernel belongs to (e.g., 4.19.x, 5.4.x, 5.10.x, 5.15.x)
- Upgrade the Linux kernel to a version >= 4.19.306 (for 4.19.x branch), >= 5.4.268 (for 5.4.x branch), >= 5.10.209 (for 5.10.x branch), or >= 5.15.148 (for 5.15.x branch)
- If using a distribution package manager (e.g., apt, yum, dnf), update via: `sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade` (Debian/Ubuntu) or `sudo yum update` / `sudo dnf update` (RHEL/Fedora)
- Alternatively, compile and install a fixed kernel from kernel.org sources if using a custom kernel
- Reboot the system to load the updated kernel
- Verify the fix is applied by checking the kernel version matches or exceeds the fixed versions above
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-52449 — 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-2023-52449 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
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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