Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: xfrm: add NULL check in...
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
xfrm: add NULL check in xfrm_update_ae_params
Normally, x->replay_esn and x->preplay_esn should be allocated at
xfrm_alloc_replay_state_esn(...) in xfrm_state_construct(...), hence the
xfrm_update_ae_params(...) is okay to update them. However, the current
implementation of xfrm_new_ae(...) allows a malicious user to directly
dereference a NULL pointer and crash the kernel like below.
BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 0000000000000000
PGD 8253067 P4D 8253067 PUD 8e0e067 PMD 0
Oops: 0002 [#1] PREEMPT SMP KASAN NOPTI
CPU: 0 PID: 98 Comm: poc.npd Not tainted 6.4.0-rc7-00072-gdad9774deaf1 #8
Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS rel-1.16.0-0-gd239552ce722-prebuilt.qemu.o4
RIP: 0010:memcpy_orig+0xad/0x140
Code: e8 4c 89 5f e0 48 8d 7f e0 73 d2 83 c2 20 48 29 d6 48 29 d7 83 fa 10 72 34 4c 8b 06 4c 8b 4e 08 c
RSP: 0018:ffff888008f57658 EFLAGS: 00000202
RAX: 0000000000000000 RBX: ffff888008bd0000 RCX: ffffffff8238e571
RDX: 0000000000000018 RSI: ffff888007f64844 RDI: 0000000000000000
RBP: 0000000000000000 R08: 0000000000000000 R09: 0000000000000000
R10: 0000000000000000 R11: 0000000000000000 R12: ffff888008f57818
R13: ffff888007f64aa4 R14: 0000000000000000 R15: 0000000000000000
FS: 00000000014013c0(0000) GS:ffff88806d600000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000
CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033
CR2: 0000000000000000 CR3: 00000000054d8000 CR4: 00000000000006f0
Call Trace:
? __die+0x1f/0x70
? page_fault_oops+0x1e8/0x500
? __pfx_is_prefetch.constprop.0+0x10/0x10
? __pfx_page_fault_oops+0x10/0x10
? _raw_spin_unlock_irqrestore+0x11/0x40
? fixup_exception+0x36/0x460
? _raw_spin_unlock_irqrestore+0x11/0x40
? exc_page_fault+0x5e/0xc0
? asm_exc_page_fault+0x26/0x30
? xfrm_update_ae_params+0xd1/0x260
? memcpy_orig+0xad/0x140
? __pfx__raw_spin_lock_bh+0x10/0x10
xfrm_update_ae_params+0xe7/0x260
xfrm_new_ae+0x298/0x4e0
? __pfx_xfrm_new_ae+0x10/0x10
? __pfx_xfrm_new_ae+0x10/0x10
xfrm_user_rcv_msg+0x25a/0x410
? __pfx_xfrm_user_rcv_msg+0x10/0x10
? __alloc_skb+0xcf/0x210
? stack_trace_save+0x90/0xd0
? filter_irq_stacks+0x1c/0x70
? __stack_depot_save+0x39/0x4e0
? __kasan_slab_free+0x10a/0x190
? kmem_cache_free+0x9c/0x340
? netlink_recvmsg+0x23c/0x660
? sock_recvmsg+0xeb/0xf0
? __sys_recvfrom+0x13c/0x1f0
? __x64_sys_recvfrom+0x71/0x90
? do_syscall_64+0x3f/0x90
? entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x72/0xdc
? copyout+0x3e/0x50
netlink_rcv_skb+0xd6/0x210
? __pfx_xfrm_user_rcv_msg+0x10/0x10
? __pfx_netlink_rcv_skb+0x10/0x10
? __pfx_sock_has_perm+0x10/0x10
? mutex_lock+0x8d/0xe0
? __pfx_mutex_lock+0x10/0x10
xfrm_netlink_rcv+0x44/0x50
netlink_unicast+0x36f/0x4c0
? __pfx_netlink_unicast+0x10/0x10
? netlink_recvmsg+0x500/0x660
netlink_sendmsg+0x3b7/0x700
This Null-ptr-deref bug is assigned CVE-2023-3772. And this commit
adds additional NULL check in xfrm_update_ae_params to fix the NPD.
Impact
The application dereferences a null pointer, causing a crash. Typical impact: denial of service via crash.
CVE-2023-53147 has a CVSS score of 5.5 (Medium). The vector is requires local access, low privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. No fixed version is listed yet, so configuration controls and monitoring matter more in the interim.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2023-53147? CVE-2023-53147 is a medium-severity null pointer dereference vulnerability. No fixed version is listed yet. The application dereferences a null pointer, causing a crash.
- How severe is CVE-2023-53147? CVE-2023-53147 has a CVSS score of 5.5 (Medium). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2023-53147? No fixed version is listed for CVE-2023-53147 yet. Monitor the advisory for updates and apply mitigations in the interim.
- Is CVE-2023-53147 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-53147 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
- What actually determines whether CVE-2023-53147 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.