CVE-2023-53856
Unknown Unknown - Not Provided
BaseFortify

Publication date: 2025-12-09

Last updated on: 2025-12-09

Assigner: kernel.org

Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: of: overlay: Call of_changeset_init() early When of_overlay_fdt_apply() fails, the changeset may be partially applied, and the caller is still expected to call of_overlay_remove() to clean up this partial state. However, of_overlay_apply() calls of_resolve_phandles() before init_overlay_changeset(). Hence if the overlay fails to apply due to an unresolved symbol, the overlay_changeset.cset.entries list is still uninitialized, and cleanup will crash with a NULL-pointer dereference in overlay_removal_is_ok(). Fix this by moving the call to of_changeset_init() from init_overlay_changeset() to of_overlay_fdt_apply(), where all other early initialization is done.
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Meta Information
Published
2025-12-09
Last Modified
2025-12-09
Generated
2026-06-16
AI Q&A
2025-12-09
EPSS Evaluated
2026-06-14
NVD
CVE-2023-53856
EUVD
EUVD-2023-60140
Affected Vendors & Products
Showing 1 associated CPE
Vendor Product Version / Range
linux linux_kernel *
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
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CWE ID Description
CWE-UNKNOWN
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Executive Summary

This vulnerability occurs in the Linux kernel's overlay subsystem. When applying an overlay, if the function of_overlay_fdt_apply() fails due to an unresolved symbol, the changeset used for tracking the overlay state is not properly initialized. Later, when the system tries to clean up this partial state by calling of_overlay_remove(), it can cause a crash due to a NULL-pointer dereference. The issue arises because of the order in which initialization functions are called, and it is fixed by moving the initialization call earlier in the process.

Impact Analysis

This vulnerability can cause the Linux kernel to crash when cleaning up a failed overlay application, leading to potential system instability or denial of service. This could disrupt normal operations on affected systems.

Mitigation Strategies

To mitigate this vulnerability, update the Linux kernel to a version where the fix has been applied. The fix involves moving the call to of_changeset_init() to an earlier point in the overlay application process to prevent crashes due to NULL-pointer dereferences. Applying the latest kernel patches or updates from your Linux distribution that address this issue is recommended.

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