In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
Bluetooth: btusb: avoid NULL pointer dereference in skb_dequeue()
A NULL pointer dereference can occur in skb_dequeue() when processing a
QCA firmware crash dump on WCN7851 (0489:e0f3).
[ 93.672166] Bluetooth: hci0: ACL memdump size(589824)
[ 93.672475] BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000008
[ 93.672517] Workqueue: hci0 hci_devcd_rx [bluetooth]
[ 93.672598] RIP: 0010:skb_dequeue+0x50/0x80
The issue stems from handle_dump_pkt_qca() returning 0 even when a dump
packet is successfully processed. This is because it incorrectly
forwards the return value of hci_devcd_init() (which returns 0 on
success). As a result, the caller (btusb_recv_acl_qca() or
btusb_recv_evt_qca()) assumes the packet was not handled and passes it
to hci_recv_frame(), leading to premature kfree() of the skb.
Later, hci_devcd_rx() attempts to dequeue the same skb from the dump
queue, resulting in a NULL pointer dereference.
Fix this by:
- Making handle_dump_pkt_qca() return 0 on success and negative errno
on failure, consistent with kernel conventions.
- Splitting dump packet detection into separate functions for ACL
and event packets for better structure and readability.
This ensures dump packets are properly identified and consumed, avoiding
double handling and preventing NULL pointer access.
What the EG score is made of (scorer v4.0: the three questions the 0–10 score mixes, published apart · methodology)
The EG score (5.5): severity, escalated by confirmed exploitation. This CVE's 5.5 is its impact severity (EG Severity), not escalated.
- EG Severity
- 5.5 MEDIUMCVSS-B, impact only: no KEV listing, EPSS or EG-KEV tier raises it.GitHub Security Advisory CVSS
- EG Likelihood
- 0.2% within 30 daysSource: FIRST EPSS (model v2026.06.15, score date 2026-10-24). FIRST's exploitation probability, not an EchelonGraph model.
- Confirmed exploitation
- None on record (CISA KEV, EG-KEV Tier 1)Reported apart from the likelihood: an observed fact, not a probability.
- EG Priority
- SSVC Track at medium mission impactTrack at low or medium mission impact; Track* at high (mission-essential systems).CISA BOD 26-04: 14 days if the affected system is publicly exposed; Fix on system upgrade if it is not.Each input and its source, and whom BOD 26-04 binds: the SSVC and BOD 26-04 blocks below.
SSVC (CISA's decision table, applied by EchelonGraph)Track at low or medium mission impact; Track* at high (mission-essential systems).
A fix is available. Apply it within your standard update timelines.
Exploitation none (CISA Vulnrichment) · Automatable no (CISA Vulnrichment) · Technical impact total (CISA Vulnrichment). All three are CISA's SSVC values (Vulnrichment). EchelonGraph applied CISA's decision table to them; CISA publishes SSVC inputs and the table, not a decision for each CVE. Mission impact is CISA's Mission & Well-being decision point, and only you can judge it. CISA's table makes it high when Mission Prevalence is Essential — the vulnerable component "directly provides capabilities that constitute at least one MEF for at least one entity" (MEF: mission essential function) — or when Public Well-Being Impact is Irreversible: "multiple fatalities are likely", the cyber-physical system "is likely lost or destroyed", "extreme or serious externalities" are imposed on other parties, or social systems such as elections or the financial grid "are destabilized and potentially collapse". CISA's decision table
BOD 26-04 (CISA's remediation timeline, Table 1)14 days if the affected system is publicly exposed; Fix on system upgrade if it is not.
The score's inputs: In CISA KEV no (CISA's KEV catalog) · Automatable no (CISA Vulnrichment) · Technical impact total (CISA Vulnrichment). Whether your system is publicly exposed is yours to answer. BOD 26-04 binds US Federal Civilian Executive Branch agencies; for anyone else it is CISA's published timeline, a reference rather than an obligation. The directive · how EchelonGraph applies it