CVE-2026-53403

Public on 2026-07-19
Modified on 2026-07-24
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

fbdev: Fix fb_new_modelist to prevent null-ptr-deref in fb_videomode_to_var

info->var, a framebuffer's current mode, is expected to have a matching
entry in info->modelist. var_to_display() relies on this and treats a
failed fb_match_mode() as "This should not happen". fb_set_var() keeps it
true by adding the mode to the list on every change, and
do_register_framebuffer() does the same at registration.

store_modes() replaces the modelist from userspace. fb_new_modelist()
validates the new modes but does not check that info->var still has a
match. It relies on fbcon_new_modelist() to re-point consoles, but that
only handles consoles mapped to the framebuffer. With fbcon unbound there
are none, so info->var is left describing a mode that is no longer in the
list.

A later console takeover runs var_to_display(), where fb_match_mode()
returns NULL and leaves fb_display[i].mode NULL. fbcon_switch() passes it
to display_to_var(), and fb_videomode_to_var() dereferences the NULL mode.

Keep the current mode in the list in fb_new_modelist(), the same way
fb_set_var() does.
Severity
Medium severity
Medium
See what this means
CVSS v3 Base Score
4.4
See breakdown

Affected Packages

Platform Package Release Date Advisory Status
Amazon Linux 2 - Core kernel Pending Fix
Amazon Linux 2 - Kernel-5.10 Extra kernel Pending Fix
Amazon Linux 2 - Kernel-5.15 Extra kernel Pending Fix
Amazon Linux 2 - Kernel-5.4 Extra kernel Pending Fix
Amazon Linux 2023 kernel Pending Fix
Amazon Linux 2023 kernel6.12 Pending Fix
Amazon Linux 2023 kernel6.18 Pending Fix

CVSS Scores

Score Type Score Vector
Amazon Linux CVSSv3 4.4 CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H