Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: null_blk: Always check queue...
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
null_blk: Always check queue mode setting from configfs
Make sure to check device queue mode in the null_validate_conf() and
return error for NULL_Q_RQ as we don't allow legacy I/O path, without
this patch we get OOPs when queue mode is set to 1 from configfs,
following are repro steps :-
modprobe null_blk nr_devices=0
mkdir config/nullb/nullb0
echo 1 > config/nullb/nullb0/memory_backed
echo 4096 > config/nullb/nullb0/blocksize
echo 20480 > config/nullb/nullb0/size
echo 1 > config/nullb/nullb0/queue_mode
echo 1 > config/nullb/nullb0/power
Entering kdb (current=0xffff88810acdd080, pid 2372) on processor 42 Oops: (null)
due to oops @ 0xffffffffc041c329
CPU: 42 PID: 2372 Comm: sh Tainted: G O N 6.3.0-rc5lblk+ #5
Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS rel-1.14.0-0-g155821a1990b-prebuilt.qemu.org 04/01/2014
RIP: 0010:null_add_dev.part.0+0xd9/0x720 [null_blk]
Code: 01 00 00 85 d2 0f 85 a1 03 00 00 48 83 bb 08 01 00 00 00 0f 85 f7 03 00 00 80 bb 62 01 00 00 00 48 8b 75 20 0f 85 6d 02 00 00 <48> 89 6e 60 48 8b 75 20 bf 06 00 00 00 e8 f5 37 2c c1 48 8b 75 20
RSP: 0018:ffffc900052cbde0 EFLAGS: 00010246
RAX: 0000000000000001 RBX: ffff88811084d800 RCX: 0000000000000001
RDX: 0000000000000000 RSI: 0000000000000000 RDI: ffff888100042e00
RBP: ffff8881053d8200 R08: ffffc900052cbd68 R09: ffff888105db2000
R10: 0000000000000001 R11: 0000000000000000 R12: 0000000000000002
R13: ffff888104765200 R14: ffff88810eec1748 R15: ffff88810eec1740
FS: 00007fd445fd1740(0000) GS:ffff8897dfc80000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000
CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033
CR2: 0000000000000060 CR3: 0000000166a00000 CR4: 0000000000350ee0
DR0: ffffffff8437a488 DR1: ffffffff8437a489 DR2: ffffffff8437a48a
DR3: ffffffff8437a48b DR6: 00000000ffff0ff0 DR7: 0000000000000400
Call Trace:
nullb_device_power_store+0xd1/0x120 [null_blk]
configfs_write_iter+0xb4/0x120
vfs_write+0x2ba/0x3c0
ksys_write+0x5f/0xe0
do_syscall_64+0x3b/0x90
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x72/0xdc
RIP: 0033:0x7fd4460c57a7
Code: 0d 00 f7 d8 64 89 02 48 c7 c0 ff ff ff ff eb b7 0f 1f 00 f3 0f 1e fa 64 8b 04 25 18 00 00 00 85 c0 75 10 b8 01 00 00 00 0f 05 <48> 3d 00 f0 ff ff 77 51 c3 48 83 ec 28 48 89 54 24 18 48 89 74 24
RSP: 002b:00007ffd3792a4a8 EFLAGS: 00000246 ORIG_RAX: 0000000000000001
RAX: ffffffffffffffda RBX: 0000000000000002 RCX: 00007fd4460c57a7
RDX: 0000000000000002 RSI: 000055b43c02e4c0 RDI: 0000000000000001
RBP: 000055b43c02e4c0 R08: 000000000000000a R09: 00007fd44615b4e0
R10: 00007fd44615b3e0 R11: 0000000000000246 R12: 0000000000000002
R13: 00007fd446198520 R14: 0000000000000002 R15: 00007fd446198700
Impact
The application dereferences a null pointer, causing a crash. Typical impact: denial of service via crash.
CVE-2023-53576 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-2023-53576? CVE-2023-53576 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-2023-53576? CVE-2023-53576 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-2023-53576? No fixed version is listed for CVE-2023-53576 yet. Monitor the advisory for updates and apply mitigations in the interim.
- Is CVE-2023-53576 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-53576 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-2023-53576 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.