CVE-2023-54176
Unknown Unknown - Not Provided
Use-After-Free in Linux Kernel MPTCP Worker Causes Kernel Panic

Publication date: 2025-12-30

Last updated on: 2025-12-30

Assigner: kernel.org

Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mptcp: stricter state check in mptcp_worker As reported by Christoph, the mptcp protocol can run the worker when the relevant msk socket is in an unexpected state: connect() // incoming reset + fastclose // the mptcp worker is scheduled mptcp_disconnect() // msk is now CLOSED listen() mptcp_worker() Leading to the following splat: divide error: 0000 [#1] PREEMPT SMP CPU: 1 PID: 21 Comm: kworker/1:0 Not tainted 6.3.0-rc1-gde5e8fd0123c #11 Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS 1.11.0-2.el7 04/01/2014 Workqueue: events mptcp_worker RIP: 0010:__tcp_select_window+0x22c/0x4b0 net/ipv4/tcp_output.c:3018 RSP: 0018:ffffc900000b3c98 EFLAGS: 00010293 RAX: 000000000000ffd7 RBX: 000000000000ffd7 RCX: 0000000000000000 RDX: 0000000000000000 RSI: ffffffff8214ce97 RDI: 0000000000000004 RBP: 000000000000ffd7 R08: 0000000000000004 R09: 0000000000010000 R10: 000000000000ffd7 R11: ffff888005afa148 R12: 000000000000ffd7 R13: 0000000000000000 R14: 0000000000000000 R15: 0000000000000000 FS: 0000000000000000(0000) GS:ffff88803ed00000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 CR2: 0000000000405270 CR3: 000000003011e006 CR4: 0000000000370ee0 DR0: 0000000000000000 DR1: 0000000000000000 DR2: 0000000000000000 DR3: 0000000000000000 DR6: 00000000fffe0ff0 DR7: 0000000000000400 Call Trace: <TASK> tcp_select_window net/ipv4/tcp_output.c:262 [inline] __tcp_transmit_skb+0x356/0x1280 net/ipv4/tcp_output.c:1345 tcp_transmit_skb net/ipv4/tcp_output.c:1417 [inline] tcp_send_active_reset+0x13e/0x320 net/ipv4/tcp_output.c:3459 mptcp_check_fastclose net/mptcp/protocol.c:2530 [inline] mptcp_worker+0x6c7/0x800 net/mptcp/protocol.c:2705 process_one_work+0x3bd/0x950 kernel/workqueue.c:2390 worker_thread+0x5b/0x610 kernel/workqueue.c:2537 kthread+0x138/0x170 kernel/kthread.c:376 ret_from_fork+0x2c/0x50 arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:308 </TASK> This change addresses the issue explicitly checking for bad states before running the mptcp worker.
CVSS Scores
EPSS Scores
Probability:
Percentile:
Meta Information
Published
2025-12-30
Last Modified
2025-12-30
Generated
2026-05-07
AI Q&A
2025-12-30
EPSS Evaluated
2026-05-05
NVD
CVE-2023-54176
EUVD
EUVD-2023-60465
Affected Vendors & Products
Showing 2 associated CPEs
Vendor Product Version / Range
linux linux_kernel *
linux kernel *
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
CWE
CWE Icon
KEV
KEV Icon
CWE ID Description
CWE-UNKNOWN
Attack-Flow Graph
AI Powered Q&A
Can you explain this vulnerability to me?

This vulnerability in the Linux kernel's mptcp (Multipath TCP) protocol occurs because the mptcp worker can run when the associated msk socket is in an unexpected or invalid state, such as CLOSED. This improper state handling leads to a kernel crash (divide error) due to operations being performed on sockets that are not in a valid state. The fix involves stricter state checks before running the mptcp worker to prevent this issue.


How can this vulnerability impact me? :

This vulnerability can cause the Linux kernel to crash (kernel panic) due to a divide error when the mptcp worker operates on sockets in invalid states. Such crashes can lead to denial of service, system instability, and potential downtime for systems relying on the affected kernel version.


Ask Our AI Assistant
Need more information? Ask your question to get an AI reply (Powered by our expertise)
0/70
EPSS Chart