CVE-2023-53171

Medium

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: vfio/type1: prevent underflow of locked_vm via exec() When a vfio container is preserved across exec, the task does not change, but it gets a new mm with locked_vm=0, and loses the count from existing dma mappings. If the user later unmaps a dma mapping, locked_vm underflows to a large unsigned value, and a subsequent dma map request fails with ENOMEM in __account_locked_vm. To avoid underflow, grab and save the mm at the time a dma is mapped. Use that mm when adjusting locked_vm, rather than re-acquiring the saved task's mm, which may have changed. If the saved mm is dead, do nothing. locked_vm is incremented for existing mappings in a subsequent patch.

Package Linux Kernel
Published 2025-09-15
Last modified 2025-12-02
CVSS version 3.1
Patch available
Yes

CVSS 3.1 score

5.5

out of 10
Medium
Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
None
Availability
High
Vector string
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Affected versions

Linux kernel versions 3.6 and later are affected. Fixed in 5.10.173, 5.15.99, 6.1.16, 6.2.3, 6.3 and their respective stable series.

Affected from
≥ 3.6
Fixed in
✓ 5.10.173 5.10.x ✓ 5.15.99 5.15.x ✓ 6.1.16 6.1.x ✓ 6.2.3 6.2.x ✓ 6.3

References

The following references provide additional information about CVE-2023-53171 including vendor advisories, patch commits, exploit details, and third-party analysis. Links are sourced from the NIST NVD database.

5 patch commits total View all on NVD

Frequently asked questions

  • What is CVE-2023-53171?

    CVE-2023-53171 is a Medium severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10 . It affects Linux kernel versions from 3.6 onward and has been patched in 5.10.173, 5.15.99, 6.1.16 and others. CVE-2023-53171 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

  • What is the CVSS score for CVE-2023-53171?

    CVE-2023-53171 has a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10, rated Medium severity (CVSS 3.1). The vector string is CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H .

  • Is there a patch available for CVE-2023-53171?

    Yes — CVE-2023-53171 has been patched. Fixed versions include 5.10.173, 5.15.99, 6.1.16 and others. If you are running Linux kernel 3.6 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.

  • Is CVE-2023-53171 actively exploited?

    No — CVE-2023-53171 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.

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