CVE-2023-53298
Unknown Unknown - Not Provided
BaseFortify

Publication date: 2025-09-16

Last updated on: 2025-12-02

Assigner: kernel.org

Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: nfc: fix memory leak of se_io context in nfc_genl_se_io The callback context for sending/receiving APDUs to/from the selected secure element is allocated inside nfc_genl_se_io and supposed to be eventually freed in se_io_cb callback function. However, there are several error paths where the bwi_timer is not charged to call se_io_cb later, and the cb_context is leaked. The patch proposes to free the cb_context explicitly on those error paths. At the moment we can't simply check 'dev->ops->se_io()' return value as it may be negative in both cases: when the timer was charged and was not.
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Meta Information
Published
2025-09-16
Last Modified
2025-12-02
Generated
2026-05-07
AI Q&A
2025-09-16
EPSS Evaluated
2026-05-05
NVD
CVE-2023-53298
Affected Vendors & Products
Showing 7 associated CPEs
Vendor Product Version / Range
linux linux_kernel From 3.13 (inc) to 4.14.308 (exc)
linux linux_kernel From 4.15 (inc) to 4.19.276 (exc)
linux linux_kernel From 4.20 (inc) to 5.4.235 (exc)
linux linux_kernel From 5.5 (inc) to 5.10.173 (exc)
linux linux_kernel From 5.11 (inc) to 5.15.100 (exc)
linux linux_kernel From 5.16 (inc) to 6.1.18 (exc)
linux linux_kernel From 6.2 (inc) to 6.2.5 (exc)
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-401 The product does not sufficiently track and release allocated memory after it has been used, making the memory unavailable for reallocation and reuse.
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AI Powered Q&A
Can you explain this vulnerability to me?

This vulnerability is a memory leak in the Linux kernel's NFC subsystem. Specifically, the callback context used for sending and receiving APDUs to and from a secure element is allocated but not always freed properly due to certain error paths where a timer callback is not triggered. This causes the allocated memory (cb_context) to be leaked. The fix involves explicitly freeing this context on those error paths to prevent the leak.


How can this vulnerability impact me? :

The memory leak caused by this vulnerability can lead to increased memory usage over time, potentially degrading system performance or causing instability in systems using the NFC secure element functionality. This could affect devices relying on NFC for secure communications or transactions.


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