What is CVE-2023-53209?

CVE-2023-53209 is a Medium severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10, classified as a NULL Pointer Dereference flaw (CWE-476), affecting Linux kernel versions from 6.1 onward and patched in 6.1.42, 6.4.7 and 6.5. CVE-2023-53209 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2023-53209?

CVE-2023-53209 has a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10, rated Medium severity. 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-2023-53209?

Yes, CVE-2023-53209 has been patched. Fixed versions include 6.1.42, 6.4.7 and 6.5. If you are running Linux kernel 6.1 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.

Is CVE-2023-53209 actively exploited?

CVE-2023-53209 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

What is NULL Pointer Dereference (CWE-476)?

The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL, typically causing a crash. See MITRE CWE for full details: https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/476.html

CVE-2023-53209

Medium

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: wifi: mac80211_hwsim: Fix possible NULL dereference In a call to mac80211_hwsim_select_tx_link() the sta pointer might be NULL, thus need to check that it is not NULL before accessing it.

Package Linux Kernel

Published 2025-09-15

Last modified 2026-01-14

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

Weakness type

CWE-476

CVE-2023-53209 is a NULL Pointer Dereference vulnerability

What is NULL Pointer Dereference?

The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL, typically causing a crash. Learn more on MITRE CWE

Affected versions

Linux kernel versions 6.1 and later are affected. Fixed in 6.1.42, 6.4.7, 6.5 and their respective stable series.

Affected from

≥ 6.1

Fixed in

✓ 6.1.42 6.1.x ✓ 6.4.7 6.4.x ✓ 6.5

References

The following references provide additional information about CVE-2023-53209 including vendor advisories, patch commits, exploit details, and third-party analysis. Links are sourced from the NIST NVD database.

Kernel patch commit
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0cc80943ef518a1c51a1111e9346d1daf11dd545
Patch
Kernel patch commit
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a8a20fed3e05b3a6866c5c58855deaf3c217ccd6
Patch
Kernel patch commit
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d0124848c7940aba73492e282506b32a13f2e30e
Patch

Details

CVE ID CVE-2023-53209

Severity Medium

CVSS score 5.5 / 10

CVSS version 3.1

Published 2025-09-15

Modified 2026-01-14

KEV No

Patch

Yes

Package linux

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2023-53209?

CVE-2023-53209 is a Medium severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10 , classified as a NULL Pointer Dereference flaw (CWE-476) . It affects Linux kernel versions from 6.1 onward and has been patched in 6.1.42, 6.4.7 and 6.5. CVE-2023-53209 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
What is the CVSS score for CVE-2023-53209?

CVE-2023-53209 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-2023-53209?

Yes — CVE-2023-53209 has been patched. Fixed versions include 6.1.42, 6.4.7 and 6.5. If you are running Linux kernel 6.1 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.
Is CVE-2023-53209 actively exploited?

No — CVE-2023-53209 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.
What is NULL Pointer Dereference (CWE-476)?

The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL, typically causing a crash. View CWE-476 on MITRE CWE →