CVE-2023-53186

Medium

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: skbuff: Fix a race between coalescing and releasing SKBs Commit 1effe8ca4e34 ("skbuff: fix coalescing for page_pool fragment recycling") allowed coalescing to proceed with non page pool page and page pool page when @from is cloned, i.e. to->pp_recycle --> false from->pp_recycle --> true skb_cloned(from) --> true However, it actually requires skb_cloned(@from) to hold true until coalescing finishes in this situation. If the other cloned SKB is released while the merging is in process, from_shinfo->nr_frags will be set to 0 toward the end of the function, causing the increment of frag page _refcount to be unexpectedly skipped resulting in inconsistent reference counts. Later when SKB(@to) is released, it frees the page directly even though the page pool page is still in use, leading to use-after-free or double-free errors. So it should be prohibited. The double-free error message below prompted us to investigate: BUG: Bad page state in process swapper/1 pfn:0e0d1 page:00000000c6548b28 refcount:-1 mapcount:0 mapping:0000000000000000 index:0x2 pfn:0xe0d1 flags: 0xfffffc0000000(node=0|zone=1|lastcpupid=0x1fffff) raw: 000fffffc0000000 0000000000000000 ffffffff00000101 0000000000000000 raw: 0000000000000002 0000000000000000 ffffffffffffffff 0000000000000000 page dumped because: nonzero _refcount CPU: 1 PID: 0 Comm: swapper/1 Tainted: G E 6.2.0+ Call Trace: <IRQ> dump_stack_lvl+0x32/0x50 bad_page+0x69/0xf0 free_pcp_prepare+0x260/0x2f0 free_unref_page+0x20/0x1c0 skb_release_data+0x10b/0x1a0 napi_consume_skb+0x56/0x150 net_rx_action+0xf0/0x350 ? __napi_schedule+0x79/0x90 __do_softirq+0xc8/0x2b1 __irq_exit_rcu+0xb9/0xf0 common_interrupt+0x82/0xa0 </IRQ> <TASK> asm_common_interrupt+0x22/0x40 RIP: 0010:default_idle+0xb/0x20

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

CVSS 3.1 score

4.7

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

Weakness type

CWE-362

CVE-2023-53186 is a Race Condition vulnerability

What is Race Condition?

The product contains a code sequence that can run concurrently with other code, creating unexpected states. Learn more on MITRE CWE

Affected versions

Linux kernel versions 5.15 and later are affected. Fixed in 5.15.108, 6.1.25, 6.2.12, 6.3 and their respective stable series.

Affected from
≥ 5.15
Fixed in
✓ 5.15.108 5.15.x ✓ 6.1.25 6.1.x ✓ 6.2.12 6.2.x ✓ 6.3

References

The following references provide additional information about CVE-2023-53186 including vendor advisories, patch commits, exploit details, and third-party analysis. Links are sourced from the NIST NVD database.

Frequently asked questions

  • What is CVE-2023-53186?

    CVE-2023-53186 is a Medium severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 4.7 out of 10 , classified as a Race Condition flaw (CWE-362) . It affects Linux kernel versions from 5.15 onward and has been patched in 5.15.108, 6.1.25, 6.2.12 and others. CVE-2023-53186 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

  • What is the CVSS score for CVE-2023-53186?

    CVE-2023-53186 has a CVSS score of 4.7 out of 10, rated Medium severity (CVSS 3.1). The vector string is CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H .

  • Is there a patch available for CVE-2023-53186?

    Yes — CVE-2023-53186 has been patched. Fixed versions include 5.15.108, 6.1.25, 6.2.12 and others. If you are running Linux kernel 5.15 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.

  • Is CVE-2023-53186 actively exploited?

    No — CVE-2023-53186 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.

  • What is Race Condition (CWE-362)?

    The product contains a code sequence that can run concurrently with other code, creating unexpected states. View CWE-362 on MITRE CWE →