CVE-2023-53261

Medium

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: coresight: Fix memory leak in acpi_buffer->pointer There are memory leaks reported by kmemleak: ... unreferenced object 0xffff00213c141000 (size 1024): comm "systemd-udevd", pid 2123, jiffies 4294909467 (age 6062.160s) hex dump (first 32 bytes): 04 00 00 00 02 00 00 00 18 10 14 3c 21 00 ff ff ...........<!... 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 03 00 00 00 10 00 00 00 ................ backtrace: [<000000004b7c9001>] __kmem_cache_alloc_node+0x2f8/0x348 [<00000000b0fc7ceb>] __kmalloc+0x58/0x108 [<0000000064ff4695>] acpi_os_allocate+0x2c/0x68 [<000000007d57d116>] acpi_ut_initialize_buffer+0x54/0xe0 [<0000000024583908>] acpi_evaluate_object+0x388/0x438 [<0000000017b2e72b>] acpi_evaluate_object_typed+0xe8/0x240 [<000000005df0eac2>] coresight_get_platform_data+0x1b4/0x988 [coresight] ... The ACPI buffer memory (buf.pointer) should be freed. But the buffer is also used after returning from acpi_get_dsd_graph(). Move the temporary variables buf to acpi_coresight_parse_graph(), and free it before the function return to prevent memory leak.

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-401

CVE-2023-53261 is a Memory Leak vulnerability

What is Memory Leak?

The product does not release memory after use, causing gradual resource exhaustion. Learn more on MITRE CWE

Affected versions

Linux kernel versions 5.3 and later are affected. Fixed in 6.5.3, 6.6 and their respective stable series.

Affected from
≥ 5.3
Fixed in
✓ 6.5.3 6.5.x ✓ 6.6

References

The following references provide additional information about CVE-2023-53261 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-2023-53261?

    CVE-2023-53261 is a Medium severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10 , classified as a Memory Leak flaw (CWE-401) . It affects Linux kernel versions from 5.3 onward and has been patched in 6.5.3 and 6.6. CVE-2023-53261 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

  • What is the CVSS score for CVE-2023-53261?

    CVE-2023-53261 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-2023-53261?

    Yes — CVE-2023-53261 has been patched. Fixed versions include 6.5.3 and 6.6. If you are running Linux kernel 5.3 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.

  • Is CVE-2023-53261 actively exploited?

    No — CVE-2023-53261 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.

  • What is Memory Leak (CWE-401)?

    The product does not release memory after use, causing gradual resource exhaustion. View CWE-401 on MITRE CWE →

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