CVE-2025-23163

Medium

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: vlan: don't propagate flags on open With the device instance lock, there is now a possibility of a deadlock: [ 1.211455] ============================================ [ 1.211571] WARNING: possible recursive locking detected [ 1.211687] 6.14.0-rc5-01215-g032756b4ca7a-dirty #5 Not tainted [ 1.211823] -------------------------------------------- [ 1.211936] ip/184 is trying to acquire lock: [ 1.212032] ffff8881024a4c30 (&dev->lock){+.+.}-{4:4}, at: dev_set_allmulti+0x4e/0xb0 [ 1.212207] [ 1.212207] but task is already holding lock: [ 1.212332] ffff8881024a4c30 (&dev->lock){+.+.}-{4:4}, at: dev_open+0x50/0xb0 [ 1.212487] [ 1.212487] other info that might help us debug this: [ 1.212626] Possible unsafe locking scenario: [ 1.212626] [ 1.212751] CPU0 [ 1.212815] ---- [ 1.212871] lock(&dev->lock); [ 1.212944] lock(&dev->lock); [ 1.213016] [ 1.213016] *** DEADLOCK *** [ 1.213016] [ 1.213143] May be due to missing lock nesting notation [ 1.213143] [ 1.213294] 3 locks held by ip/184: [ 1.213371] #0: ffffffff838b53e0 (rtnl_mutex){+.+.}-{4:4}, at: rtnl_nets_lock+0x1b/0xa0 [ 1.213543] #1: ffffffff84e5fc70 (&net->rtnl_mutex){+.+.}-{4:4}, at: rtnl_nets_lock+0x37/0xa0 [ 1.213727] #2: ffff8881024a4c30 (&dev->lock){+.+.}-{4:4}, at: dev_open+0x50/0xb0 [ 1.213895] [ 1.213895] stack backtrace: [ 1.213991] CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 184 Comm: ip Not tainted 6.14.0-rc5-01215-g032756b4ca7a-dirty #5 [ 1.213993] Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS Arch Linux 1.16.3-1-1 04/01/2014 [ 1.213994] Call Trace: [ 1.213995] <TASK> [ 1.213996] dump_stack_lvl+0x8e/0xd0 [ 1.214000] print_deadlock_bug+0x28b/0x2a0 [ 1.214020] lock_acquire+0xea/0x2a0 [ 1.214027] __mutex_lock+0xbf/0xd40 [ 1.214038] dev_set_allmulti+0x4e/0xb0 # real_dev->flags & IFF_ALLMULTI [ 1.214040] vlan_dev_open+0xa5/0x170 # ndo_open on vlandev [ 1.214042] __dev_open+0x145/0x270 [ 1.214046] __dev_change_flags+0xb0/0x1e0 [ 1.214051] netif_change_flags+0x22/0x60 # IFF_UP vlandev [ 1.214053] dev_change_flags+0x61/0xb0 # for each device in group from dev->vlan_info [ 1.214055] vlan_device_event+0x766/0x7c0 # on netdevsim0 [ 1.214058] notifier_call_chain+0x78/0x120 [ 1.214062] netif_open+0x6d/0x90 [ 1.214064] dev_open+0x5b/0xb0 # locks netdevsim0 [ 1.214066] bond_enslave+0x64c/0x1230 [ 1.214075] do_set_master+0x175/0x1e0 # on netdevsim0 [ 1.214077] do_setlink+0x516/0x13b0 [ 1.214094] rtnl_newlink+0xaba/0xb80 [ 1.214132] rtnetlink_rcv_msg+0x440/0x490 [ 1.214144] netlink_rcv_skb+0xeb/0x120 [ 1.214150] netlink_unicast+0x1f9/0x320 [ 1.214153] netlink_sendmsg+0x346/0x3f0 [ 1.214157] __sock_sendmsg+0x86/0xb0 [ 1.214160] ____sys_sendmsg+0x1c8/0x220 [ 1.214164] ___sys_sendmsg+0x28f/0x2d0 [ 1.214179] __x64_sys_sendmsg+0xef/0x140 [ 1.214184] do_syscall_64+0xec/0x1d0 [ 1.214190] entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x77/0x7f [ 1.214191] RIP: 0033:0x7f2d1b4a7e56 Device setup: netdevsim0 (down) ^ ^ bond netdevsim1.100@netdevsim1 allmulticast=on (down) When we enslave the lower device (netdevsim0) which has a vlan, we propagate vlan's allmuti/promisc flags during ndo_open. This causes (re)locking on of the real_dev. Propagate allmulti/promisc on flags change, not on the open. There is a slight semantics change that vlans that are down now propagate the flags, but this seems unlikely to result in the real issues. Reproducer: echo 0 1 > /sys/bus/netdevsim/new_device dev_path=$(ls -d /sys/bus/netdevsim/devices/netdevsim0/net/*) dev=$(echo $dev_path | rev | cut -d/ -f1 | rev) ip link set dev $dev name netdevsim0 ip link set dev netdevsim0 up ip link add link netdevsim0 name netdevsim0.100 type vlan id 100 ip link set dev netdevsim0.100 allm ---truncated---

Package Linux Kernel
Published 2025-05-01
Last modified 2025-11-05
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-667

CVE-2025-23163 is a Improper Locking vulnerability

What is Improper Locking?

The product does not properly acquire or release a lock, which can lead to unexpected behaviour. Learn more on MITRE CWE

Affected versions

Linux kernel versions 2.6.23 and later are affected. Fixed in 5.4.293, 5.10.237, 5.15.181, 6.1.135, 6.6.88, 6.12.24, 6.13.12, 6.14.3, 6.15 and their respective stable series.

Affected from
≥ 2.6.23
Fixed in
✓ 5.4.293 5.4.x ✓ 5.10.237 5.10.x ✓ 5.15.181 5.15.x ✓ 6.1.135 6.1.x ✓ 6.6.88 6.6.x ✓ 6.12.24 6.12.x ✓ 6.13.12 6.13.x ✓ 6.14.3 6.14.x ✓ 6.15

References

The following references provide additional information about CVE-2025-23163 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-2025-23163?

    CVE-2025-23163 is a Medium severity Linux kernel vulnerability with a CVSS score of 5.5 out of 10 , classified as an Improper Locking flaw (CWE-667) . It affects Linux kernel versions from 2.6.23 onward and has been patched in 5.4.293, 5.10.237, 5.15.181 and others. CVE-2025-23163 has not been confirmed as actively exploited and is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

  • What is the CVSS score for CVE-2025-23163?

    CVE-2025-23163 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-2025-23163?

    Yes — CVE-2025-23163 has been patched. Fixed versions include 5.4.293, 5.10.237, 5.15.181 and others. If you are running Linux kernel 2.6.23 or later up to the fix versions, apply the relevant patch for your kernel branch.

  • Is CVE-2025-23163 actively exploited?

    No — CVE-2025-23163 has not been confirmed as actively exploited. It is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog.

  • What is Improper Locking (CWE-667)?

    The product does not properly acquire or release a lock, which can lead to unexpected behaviour. View CWE-667 on MITRE CWE →