CVE-2023-53235
BaseFortify
Publication date: 2025-09-15
Last updated on: 2025-12-04
Assigner: kernel.org
Description
Description
CVSS Scores
EPSS Scores
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Meta Information
Affected Vendors & Products
| Vendor | Product | Version / Range |
|---|---|---|
| linux | linux_kernel | From 6.3 (inc) to 6.5.5 (exc) |
| linux | linux_kernel | 6.6 |
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
| CWE ID | Description |
|---|---|
| CWE-416 | The product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory "belongs" to the code that operates on the new pointer. |
Attack-Flow Graph
AI Powered Q&A
Can you explain this vulnerability to me?
This vulnerability is a use-after-free (UAF) issue in the Linux kernel's Direct Rendering Manager (DRM) test helpers. It occurs when a DRM driver is freed as a kunit-managed resource but is still dereferenced later by device-managed resources during cleanup, leading to accessing freed memory. The fix involves making the driver device-managed to ensure proper cleanup order and avoid dereferencing freed memory.
How can this vulnerability impact me? :
This use-after-free vulnerability can lead to kernel crashes or undefined behavior due to accessing freed memory. It may cause system instability or potential security risks if exploited, such as privilege escalation or denial of service, depending on the context in which the vulnerable code is used.
How can this vulnerability be detected on my network or system? Can you suggest some commands?
This vulnerability is a use-after-free (UAF) issue in the Linux kernel's DRM driver code, typically detected by kernel debugging tools such as KASAN (Kernel Address Sanitizer). Detection involves monitoring kernel logs for KASAN error messages indicating slab-use-after-free in drm_dev_put. You can check for such messages using the command: dmesg | grep -i kasan. Additionally, running kernel tests that exercise DRM device allocation and cleanup under Kunit may reveal the issue.
What immediate steps should I take to mitigate this vulnerability?
Immediate mitigation involves updating the Linux kernel to a version where this vulnerability is fixed, as the issue is resolved by making the driver device-managed to prevent use-after-free. Until an update is applied, avoid running Kunit tests or workloads that trigger the drm driver resource cleanup paths that lead to this UAF. Monitoring kernel logs for KASAN errors can help identify if the issue is being triggered.