CVE-2023-54027
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
iio: core: Prevent invalid memory access when there is no parent
Commit 813665564b3d ("iio: core: Convert to use firmware node handle instead of OF node") switched the kind of nodes to use for label retrieval in device registration. Probably an unwanted change in that commit was that if the device has no parent then NULL pointer is accessed. This is what happens in the stock IIO dummy driver when a new entry is created in configfs:
# mkdir /sys/kernel/config/iio/devices/dummy/foo BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: ... ... Call Trace: __iio_device_register iio_dummy_probe
Since there seems to be no reason to make a parent device of an IIO dummy device mandatory, let’s prevent the invalid memory access in __iio_device_register when the parent device is NULL. With this change, the IIO dummy driver works fine with configfs.
AI Insight
LLM-synthesized narrative grounded in this CVE's description and references.
A NULL pointer dereference in the Linux kernel's IIO core when registering a device without a parent, triggered via configfs dummy driver.
Vulnerability
In the Linux kernel's Industrial I/O (IIO) subsystem, a NULL pointer dereference occurs in __iio_device_register when a device has no parent. This was introduced by commit 813665564b3d, which switched to firmware node handles for label retrieval but failed to handle the case where the parent device pointer is NULL [1].
Exploitation
The vulnerability is triggered by creating a new IIO dummy device entry via configfs, e.g., mkdir /sys/kernel/config/iio/devices/dummy/foo. This causes a kernel NULL pointer dereference, as seen in the call trace: __iio_device_register followed by iio_dummy_probe [1]. No special privileges or authentication are required beyond local access to create configfs entries.
Impact
An attacker with local access to configfs can cause a kernel crash (denial of service) by exploiting this NULL pointer dereference. The impact is limited to system availability; there is no evidence of privilege escalation or data corruption.
Mitigation
The fix, committed as b2a69969908fcaf68596dfc04369af0fe2e1d2f7, adds a NULL check for the parent device in __iio_device_register, preventing the invalid memory access [1]. The patch has been applied to the stable kernel tree. Users should update to a kernel containing this fix.
AI Insight generated on May 19, 2026. Synthesized from this CVE's description and the cited reference URLs; citations are validated against the source bundle.
Affected products
1Patches
3312f04ede209a4b34cccff14b2a69969908fVulnerability mechanics
Generated on May 9, 2026. Inputs: CWE entries + fix-commit diffs from this CVE's patches. Citations validated against bundle.
References
3News mentions
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