CVE-2023-54300 | wifi: ath9k: avoid referencing uninit memory in ath9k_wmi_ctrl_rx

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: ath9k: avoid referencing uninit memory in ath9k_wmi_ctrl_rx For the reasons also described in commit b383e8abed41 ("wifi: ath9k: avoid uninit memory read in ath9k_htc_rx_msg()"), ath9k_htc_rx_msg() should validate pkt_len before accessing the SKB. For example, the obtained SKB may have been badly constructed with pkt_len = 8. In this case, the SKB can only contain a valid htc_frame_hdr but after being processed in ath9k_htc_rx_msg() and passed to ath9k_wmi_ctrl_rx() endpoint RX handler, it is expected to have a WMI command header which should be located inside its data payload. Implement sanity checking inside ath9k_wmi_ctrl_rx(). Otherwise, uninit memory can be referenced. Tested on Qualcomm Atheros Communications AR9271 802.11n . Found by Linux Verification Center (linuxtesting.org) with Syzkaller.

Published: 2025-12-30 Last update: 2026-04-15 Assigner: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2023-54300 is rated Low Risk (19.3/100): low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.06%). Mandatory action: Low composite risk—no urgent action required; patch on your normal maintenance cycle and revisit priority if CVSS or EPSS increases.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2023-54300

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-09 0.04% 0.06% +0.02%
2 2026-05-28 0.06% 0.04% -0.02%
3 2026-05-01 0.06%

Full EPSS history (4 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2023-54300

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

No CVSS data in dataset for this CVE.

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2023-54300

OS Trackers for CVE-2023-54300

vendor priority summary link
debian not yet assigned CVE-2023-54300 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (linux), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2023-54300
redhat medium https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-54300
suse medium https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-54300/
ubuntu medium CVE-2023-54300 medium priority: Ubuntu including 157 source packages (linux, linux-allwinner-5.19, …), 1405 status rows across 9 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, noble, plucky, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 1010, ignored 177, released 133, not-affected 65, needed 19, needs-triage 1. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2023-54300

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2023-54300

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
No affected products in dataset.

References for CVE-2023-54300

cvelogic Threat Intelligence