5.9
MEDIUM CVSS 3.1
CVE-2026-12233
Uninitialized mutex in TLS trusted-credential backend causes kernel NULL-deref DoS under contention
Description

The PSA Protected Storage credential backend (subsys/net/lib/tls_credentials/tls_credentials_trusted.c) declared its credential-store mutex as a plain zero-filled static struct k_mutex credential_lock; and never called k_mutex_init() on it. A statically zero-filled k_mutex has an uninitialized wait queue (its dlist head/tail are NULL instead of the self-referential sentinels that k_mutex_init/K_MUTEX_DEFINE install). The uncontended lock path does not touch the wait queue, so the defect is latent and serialized use behaves correctly. When two execution contexts contend on the lock, k_mutex_lock() pends the blocking thread on the wait queue via z_pend_curr(), which calls sys_dlist_append() on the zeroed list and dereferences a NULL tail pointer (tail->next = node), faulting the kernel. The lock is held during TLS handshake credential loading and by all credential add/get/delete operations, so a deployment performing concurrent TLS handshakes (for example a server handling multiple simultaneous connections from a remote peer) or a credential-management operation concurrent with a handshake can trigger the dereference. The impact is a denial of service: a deterministic kernel panic / device reset on the first contention. There is no memory corruption beyond the NULL dereference and no confidentiality or integrity impact; mutual exclusion on the fast path remains correct. Exposure is limited to builds with CONFIG_TLS_CREDENTIALS_BACKEND_PROTECTED_STORAGE enabled (PSA Protected Storage / TF-M platforms); the default volatile RAM backend initializes its lock correctly and is unaffected. The fix initializes the mutex statically with K_MUTEX_DEFINE(credential_lock), providing a valid wait queue so the contended path no longer touches a NULL list.

INFO

Published Date :

Aug. 12, 2026, 5:17 a.m.

Last Modified :

Aug. 12, 2026, 5:17 a.m.

Remotely Exploit :

No
Affected Products

The following products are affected by CVE-2026-12233 vulnerability. Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the products that are affected, the information is not represented in the table below.

ID Vendor Product Action
1 Zephyrproject zephyr
2 Zephyrproject zephyr
CVSS Scores
The Common Vulnerability Scoring System is a standardized framework for assessing the severity of vulnerabilities in software and systems. We collect and displays CVSS scores from various sources for each CVE.
Score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Score Impact Score Source
CVSS 3.1 MEDIUM e2e69745-5e70-4e92-8431-deb5529a81ad
CVSS 3.1 MEDIUM [email protected]
Solution
Initialize mutex statically using K_MUTEX_DEFINE for deterministic kernel panic prevention.
  • Initialize the mutex statically with K_MUTEX_DEFINE.
  • Ensure the mutex has a valid wait queue.
  • Apply patches to fix the mutex initialization.
  • Rebuild and deploy the affected component.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools

Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to CVE-2026-12233.

URL Resource
https://github.com/zephyrproject-rtos/zephyr/commit/29581d586f3d68ec8bb1448b522e5470d4a06aa9
https://github.com/zephyrproject-rtos/zephyr/security/advisories/GHSA-57c4-xcq2-fqj7
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration

While CVE identifies specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-12233 is associated with the following CWEs:

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC) stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2026-12233 weaknesses.

We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).

Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.

The following list is the news that have been mention CVE-2026-12233 vulnerability anywhere in the article.

The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2026-12233 vulnerability over time.

Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.

  • New CVE Received by [email protected]

    Aug. 12, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Affected [{'vendor': 'zephyrproject', 'product': 'zephyr', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '3.2.0', 'lessThan': '4.4.2', 'versionType': 'semver'}], 'packageName': 'zephyr', 'programFiles': ['subsys/net/lib/tls_credentials/tls_credentials_trusted.c'], 'collectionURL': 'https://github.com/zephyrproject-rtos/zephyr', 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}]
    Added Description The PSA Protected Storage credential backend (subsys/net/lib/tls_credentials/tls_credentials_trusted.c) declared its credential-store mutex as a plain zero-filled static struct k_mutex credential_lock; and never called k_mutex_init() on it. A statically zero-filled k_mutex has an uninitialized wait queue (its dlist head/tail are NULL instead of the self-referential sentinels that k_mutex_init/K_MUTEX_DEFINE install). The uncontended lock path does not touch the wait queue, so the defect is latent and serialized use behaves correctly. When two execution contexts contend on the lock, k_mutex_lock() pends the blocking thread on the wait queue via z_pend_curr(), which calls sys_dlist_append() on the zeroed list and dereferences a NULL tail pointer (tail->next = node), faulting the kernel. The lock is held during TLS handshake credential loading and by all credential add/get/delete operations, so a deployment performing concurrent TLS handshakes (for example a server handling multiple simultaneous connections from a remote peer) or a credential-management operation concurrent with a handshake can trigger the dereference. The impact is a denial of service: a deterministic kernel panic / device reset on the first contention. There is no memory corruption beyond the NULL dereference and no confidentiality or integrity impact; mutual exclusion on the fast path remains correct. Exposure is limited to builds with CONFIG_TLS_CREDENTIALS_BACKEND_PROTECTED_STORAGE enabled (PSA Protected Storage / TF-M platforms); the default volatile RAM backend initializes its lock correctly and is unaffected. The fix initializes the mutex statically with K_MUTEX_DEFINE(credential_lock), providing a valid wait queue so the contended path no longer touches a NULL list.
    Added CVSS V3.1 AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
    Added CWE CWE-665
    Added Reference https://github.com/zephyrproject-rtos/zephyr/commit/29581d586f3d68ec8bb1448b522e5470d4a06aa9
    Added Reference https://github.com/zephyrproject-rtos/zephyr/security/advisories/GHSA-57c4-xcq2-fqj7
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS score history of the vulnerability.