High

CVE-2023-54164 — Bluetooth: ISO: fix iso_conn related locking and validity issues

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: Bluetooth: ISO: fix iso_conn related locking and validity issues sk->sk_state indicates whether iso_pi(sk)->conn is valid. Operations that check/update sk_state and access conn should hold lock_sock, otherwise they can race. The order of taking locks is hci_dev_lock > lock_sock > iso_conn_lock, which is how it is in connect/disconnect_cfm -> iso_conn_del -> iso_chan_del. Fix locking in iso_connect_cis/bis and sendmsg/recvmsg to take lock_sock around updating sk_state and conn. iso_conn_del must not occur during iso_connect_cis/bis, as it frees the iso_conn. Hold hdev->lock longer to prevent that. This should not reintroduce the issue fixed in commit 241f51931c35 ("Bluetooth: ISO: Avoid circular locking dependency"), since the we acquire locks in order. We retain the fix in iso_sock_connect to release lock_sock before iso_connect_* acquires hdev->lock. Similarly for commit 6a5ad251b7cd ("Bluetooth: ISO: Fix possible circular locking dependency"). We retain the fix in iso_conn_ready to not acquire iso_conn_lock before lock_sock. iso_conn_add shall return iso_conn with valid hcon. Make it so also when reusing an old CIS connection waiting for disconnect timeout (see __iso_sock_close where conn->hcon is set to NULL). Trace with iso_conn_del after iso_chan_add in iso_connect_cis: =============================================================== iso_sock_create:771: sock 00000000be9b69b7 iso_sock_init:693: sk 000000004dff667e iso_sock_bind:827: sk 000000004dff667e 70:1a:b8:98:ff:a2 type 1 iso_sock_setsockopt:1289: sk 000000004dff667e iso_sock_setsockopt:1289: sk 000000004dff667e iso_sock_setsockopt:1289: sk 000000004dff667e iso_sock_connect:875: sk 000000004dff667e iso_connect_cis:353: 70:1a:b8:98:ff:a2 -> 28:3d:c2:4a:7e:da hci_get_route:1199: 70:1a:b8:98:ff:a2 -> 28:3d:c2:4a:7e:da hci_conn_add:1005: hci0 dst 28:3d:c2:4a:7e:da iso_conn_add:140: hcon 000000007b65d182 conn 00000000daf8625e __iso_chan_add:214: conn 00000000daf8625e iso_connect_cfm:1700: hcon 000000007b65d182 bdaddr 28:3d:c2:4a:7e:da status 12 iso_conn_del:187: hcon 000000007b65d182 conn 00000000daf8625e, err 16 iso_sock_clear_timer:117: sock 000000004dff667e state 3 <Note: sk_state is BT_BOUND (3), so iso_connect_cis is still running at this point> iso_chan_del:153: sk 000000004dff667e, conn 00000000daf8625e, err 16 hci_conn_del:1151: hci0 hcon 000000007b65d182 handle 65535 hci_conn_unlink:1102: hci0: hcon 000000007b65d182 hci_chan_list_flush:2780: hcon 000000007b65d182 iso_sock_getsockopt:1376: sk 000000004dff667e iso_sock_getname:1070: sock 00000000be9b69b7, sk 000000004dff667e iso_sock_getname:1070: sock 00000000be9b69b7, sk 000000004dff667e iso_sock_getsockopt:1376: sk 000000004dff667e iso_sock_getname:1070: sock 00000000be9b69b7, sk 000000004dff667e iso_sock_getname:1070: sock 00000000be9b69b7, sk 000000004dff667e iso_sock_shutdown:1434: sock 00000000be9b69b7, sk 000000004dff667e, how 1 __iso_sock_close:632: sk 000000004dff667e state 5 socket 00000000be9b69b7 <Note: sk_state is BT_CONNECT (5), even though iso_chan_del sets BT_CLOSED (6). Only iso_connect_cis sets it to BT_CONNECT, so it must be that iso_chan_del occurred between iso_chan_add and end of iso_connect_cis.> BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000000 PGD 8000000006467067 P4D 8000000006467067 PUD 3f5f067 PMD 0 Oops: 0000 [#1] PREEMPT SMP PTI Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), BIOS 1.16.2-1.fc38 04/01/2014 RIP: 0010:__iso_sock_close (net/bluetooth/iso.c:664) bluetooth =============================================================== Trace with iso_conn_del before iso_chan_add in iso_connect_cis: =============================================================== iso_connect_cis:356: 70:1a:b8:98:ff:a2 -> 28:3d:c2:4a:7e:da ... iso_conn_add:140: hcon 0000000093bc551f conn 00000000768ae504 hci_dev_put:1487: hci0 orig refcnt 21 hci_event_packet:7607: hci0: e ---truncated---

Published Dec 30, 2025 · Updated Oct 15, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP · CNA: Linux

Low

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.

How the score was calculated

EPSS 0.3% (30-day exploitation probability)+3
Technical severity (high)+6

The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).

Triage

Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.

Exploitation

Not confirmed

Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.

EPSS FIRST

0.28%

ahead of 20% of scored CVEs · Oct 14, 2026

Affects

Linux

CVSS base

8.0

High · 2 source(s)

CISA SSVC assessment CISA

Three decision points CISA publishes for the CVEs it assesses (SSVC 2.0.3). A stakeholder decision, not a severity score.

Exploitation

None

none · proof-of-concept · active

Automatable

can an attacker script the kill-chain steps

Technical impact

Total

partial · total control of the vulnerable component

Remediation

Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.

No fix documented by the sources we poll. That does not mean none exists: check the vendor advisory.

First 24 hours

Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.

Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Linux Linux).
No fix documented in the sources: reduce exposure and monitor the vendor advisory.
Search available logs for exploit probes, errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

Vendor	Product	Versions	Status	Source
Linux	Linux	≥ c524f9561c657b8af26dd4f67092b8928261aa62 and < e969bfed84c1f88dc722a678ee08488e86f0ec1a≥ 241f51931c35085449502c10f64fb3ecd6e02171 and < 88ad50f2b843a510bd7c922c0a4e2484aff9d645≥ 241f51931c35085449502c10f64fb3ecd6e02171 and < d40ae85ee62e3666f45bc61864b22121346f88efversion 2539cbc625c560d5432e2f0fc04bfe4a889cf737≥ 6.1.9 and < 6.1.42version 6.2	Vulnerable	CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector

Adjacent

Attack complexity

Low

Privileges required

Low

User interaction

None

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

High

Every base score collected

Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.

Score	Version	Severity	Expl.	Impact	Scored by
8.0	CVSS 3.1	High	2.1	5.9	416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 via NIST National Vulnerability Database
8.0	CVSS 3.1	High	—	—	Linux via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H (score shown at the top: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67)

EPSS over time FIRST

Oct 13, 2026 → Oct 14, 2026 · 2 reading(s) · max 0.28%

Detection

Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.

Not enough vector or weakness data: use the affected application’s logs as a starting point.

application logs

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

2026
SSVC assessment updated
Oct 15, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Affected products added · linux/linux
Oct 13, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
Record published
Oct 13, 2026
CVSS changed · 8.0
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Source status changed · → Deferred
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
Record created in this database
Oct 13, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
2025
CVE published
Dec 30, 2025 · Linux

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

1× Official description updated · Oct 13, 2026 – Oct 13, 2026

References

3 on the record

git.kernel.org/stable/c/d40ae85ee62e3666f45bc61864b22121346f88ef
NIST National Vulnerability Database
git.kernel.org/stable/c/e969bfed84c1f88dc722a678ee08488e86f0ec1a
NIST National Vulnerability Database
git.kernel.org/stable/c/88ad50f2b843a510bd7c922c0a4e2484aff9d645
NIST National Vulnerability Database

Elsewhere on this site

Linux
every CVE for this vendor

Related CVEs (same products)

Critical CVE-2026-99999 ipv4: validate checksum_start before completing checksum 13h
Unknown CVE-2026-98432 ipv4: free inet_opt and ireq_opt after an RCU grace period 13h
Unknown CVE-2026-98431 RDMA/uverbs: Fix mmap_lock/disassociation_lock circular dependency 1d
Unknown CVE-2026-98430 RDMA/efa: Keep admin queues alive while IRQ is registered 1d
Unknown CVE-2026-98429 RDMA/efa: Keep EQ resources alive while IRQ is registered 1d
Unknown CVE-2026-98428 ALSA: usb: 6fire: Avoid embedded URBs 1d

Not in any source we poll

Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.

No fixed version, patch or mitigation documented.
No CWE classification.
No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.

Answered from this record

Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.

What should defenders know first?

CVE-2023-54164 is "Bluetooth: ISO: fix iso_conn related locking and validity issues", rated High. It affects Linux (Linux); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 8.0 describes technical severity. EPSS 0.28% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.

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