Linux: Double Free
CVE-2023-53308 is a high-severity double free vulnerability in Linux, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. The record lists versions d52a0cca591e899d4e5c8ab19e067b4c6b7d104f, be85912c36ddca3e8b2eef1b5392cd8db6bdb730, b22b514209ff8c4287abb853399890ab97e1b5ca as the first without the flaw, so updating Linux to one of those releases or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.17% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Update Linux to d52a0cca591e899d4e5c8ab19e067b4c6b7d104f or be85912c36ddca3e8b2eef1b5392cd8db6bdb730 or b22b514209ff8c4287abb853399890ab97e1b5ca or 83996d317b1deddc85006376082e8886f55aa709, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
- Update Linux Kernel to 4.10 or 4.14.316 or 4.19.284 or 5.4, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | 982d424239d7fae74938557428d45c717567ea9b up to, but not including, d52a0cca591e899d4e5c8ab19e067b4c6b7d104f; 04748841f7a02ec6ff07fadfc5d1f8e24e61946d up to, but not including, be85912c36ddca3e8b2eef1b5392cd8db6bdb730; a31eda65ba210741b598044d045480494d0ed52a up to, but not including, b22b514209ff8c4287abb853399890ab97e1b5ca; a31eda65ba210741b598044d045480494d0ed52a up to, but not including, 83996d317b1deddc85006376082e8886f55aa709; a31eda65ba210741b598044d045480494d0ed52a up to, but not including, c1bc2870f14e526a01897e14c747a0a0ca125231; a31eda65ba210741b598044d045480494d0ed52a up to, but not including, 9407454a9b18bbeff216e8ecde87ffb2171e9ccf; a31eda65ba210741b598044d045480494d0ed52a up to, but not including, e02d8d5b1602689b98d9b91550a11b9b57baedbe; a31eda65ba210741b598044d045480494d0ed52a up to, but not including, f816b9829b19394d318e01953aa3b2721bca040d; and 7 more ranges | d52a0cca591e899d4e5c8ab19e067b4c6b7d104f, be85912c36ddca3e8b2eef1b5392cd8db6bdb730, b22b514209ff8c4287abb853399890ab97e1b5ca, 83996d317b1deddc85006376082e8886f55aa709, c1bc2870f14e526a01897e14c747a0a0ca125231, 9407454a9b18bbeff216e8ecde87ffb2171e9ccf |
| Linux | Linux Kernel | 4.9.206 up to, but not including, 4.10; 4.14.158 up to, but not including, 4.14.316; 4.19.88 up to, but not including, 4.19.284; 5.3.15 up to, but not including, 5.4; 5.4.1 up to, but not including, 5.4.244; 5.5 up to, but not including, 5.10.181; 5.11 up to, but not including, 5.15.113; 5.16 up to, but not including, 6.1.30; and 3 more ranges | 4.10, 4.14.316, 4.19.284, 5.4, 5.4.244, 5.10.181 |
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Privileges required
- LowA basic user account is enough.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- HighThe component can be taken down completely.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by NVD.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.8 | High | NVD |
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.8 | High | CISA (ADP) |
Official description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: fec: Better handle pm_runtime_get() failing in .remove() In the (unlikely) event that pm_runtime_get() (disguised as pm_runtime_resume_and_get()) fails, the remove callback returned an error early. The problem with this is that the driver core ignores the error value and continues removing the device. This results in a resource leak. Worse the devm allocated resources are freed and so if a callback of the driver is called later the register mapping is already gone which probably results in a crash.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Double Free
The product calls free() twice on the same memory address.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Choose a language that provides automatic memory management.
- Ensure that each allocation is freed only once. After freeing a chunk, set the pointer to NULL to ensure the pointer cannot be freed again. In complicated error conditions, be sure that clean-up routines respect the state of allocation properly. If the language is object oriented, ensure that object destructors delete each chunk of memory only once.
- Use a static analysis tool to find double free instances.
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Patches and release notes
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/83996d317b1deddc85006376082e8886f55aa709
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/9407454a9b18bbeff216e8ecde87ffb2171e9ccf
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/b22b514209ff8c4287abb853399890ab97e1b5ca
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/be85912c36ddca3e8b2eef1b5392cd8db6bdb730
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/c1bc2870f14e526a01897e14c747a0a0ca125231
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/d52a0cca591e899d4e5c8ab19e067b4c6b7d104f
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/e02d8d5b1602689b98d9b91550a11b9b57baedbe
- git.kernel.org/stable/c/f816b9829b19394d318e01953aa3b2721bca040d
Recent Double Free vulnerabilities
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
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