CVE-2023-28469
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedAn issue was discovered in the Arm Mali GPU Kernel Driver. A non-privileged user can make improper GPU processing operations to gain access to already freed memory. This affects Valhall r29p0 through r42p0 before r43p0, and Arm's GPU Architecture Gen5 r41p0 through r42p0 before r43p0.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceA use-after-free vulnerability in the Arm Mali GPU Kernel Driver allows non-privileged users to access freed memory through improper GPU processing operations. The flaw exists in Valhall (r29p0-r42p0) and Gen5 (r41p0-r42p0) GPU architectures before the r43p0 patch release.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data>= r41p0, < r43p0>= r29p0, < r43p0CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify Mali GPU architecture in useCheck kernel logs (dmesg) or system hardware info for 'Arm Mali' GPU and determine if it is Valhall or Avalon architectureAffected if System uses Arm Valhall (r29p0-r42p0) or Avalon (r41p0-r42p0) GPU architecture
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Locate the Mali GPU kernel driver versionCheck the kernel module version for the Mali GPU driver - typically via 'modinfo' command or by reading /sys/module/<mali_driver>/version if the module is loadedAffected if Cannot determine driver version or version falls within affected ranges
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Compare installed version against affected rangesFor Valhall architecture: version must be >= r29p0 and < r43p0 to be affected. For Avalon architecture: version must be >= r41p0 and < r43p0 to be affectedAffected if Installed version is r29p0 through r42p0 for Valhall, or r41p0 through r42p0 for Avalon, and NOT r43p0 or later
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Verify GPU processing operations are activeConfirm the Mali GPU is actively processing workloads - check for running graphics applications or GPU compute tasks that utilize the driverAffected if GPU is actively processing operations through the vulnerable driver code path
The system is affected if it runs an Arm Mali GPU with Valhall (r29p0-r42p0) or Avalon (r41p0-r42p0) driver versions and actively uses GPU processing operations.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
dbcve · scopedApply the Mali GPU driver update to version r43p0 or later. This is a kernel-level fix requiring firmware/driver distribution through device manufacturers.
r43p0
- Identify the current Arm Mali GPU kernel driver version in use (e.g., via `modinfo mali` or checking /sys/module/mali/version)
- Update the kernel or GPU driver package to version r43p0 or later
- Reboot the system to load the updated driver
- Verify the driver version has been updated to r43p0 or later using `modinfo mali`
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-28469 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-28469 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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