Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2023-53060

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-05-02
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 4.14.312 / 4.19.280 or later.
See remediation →
57/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click Patch available

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 · unedited
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: igb: revert rtnl_lock() that causes deadlock The commit 6faee3d4ee8b ("igb: Add lock to avoid data race") adds rtnl_lock to eliminate a false data race shown below (FREE from device detaching) | (USE from netdev core) igb_remove | igb_ndo_get_vf_config igb_disable_sriov | vf >= adapter->vfs_allocated_count? kfree(adapter->vf_data) | adapter->vfs_allocated_count = 0 | | memcpy(... adapter->vf_data[vf] The above race will never happen and the extra rtnl_lock causes deadlock below [ 141.420169] <TASK> [ 141.420672] __schedule+0x2dd/0x840 [ 141.421427] schedule+0x50/0xc0 [ 141.422041] schedule_preempt_disabled+0x11/0x20 [ 141.422678] __mutex_lock.isra.13+0x431/0x6b0 [ 141.423324] unregister_netdev+0xe/0x20 [ 141.423578] igbvf_remove+0x45/0xe0 [igbvf] [ 141.423791] pci_device_remove+0x36/0xb0 [ 141.423990] device_release_driver_internal+0xc1/0x160 [ 141.424270] pci_stop_bus_device+0x6d/0x90 [ 141.424507] pci_stop_and_remove_bus_device+0xe/0x20 [ 141.424789] pci_iov_remove_virtfn+0xba/0x120 [ 141.425452] sriov_disable+0x2f/0xf0 [ 141.425679] igb_disable_sriov+0x4e/0x100 [igb] [ 141.426353] igb_remove+0xa0/0x130 [igb] [ 141.426599] pci_device_remove+0x36/0xb0 [ 141.426796] device_release_driver_internal+0xc1/0x160 [ 141.427060] driver_detach+0x44/0x90 [ 141.427253] bus_remove_driver+0x55/0xe0 [ 141.427477] pci_unregister_driver+0x2a/0xa0 [ 141.428296] __x64_sys_delete_module+0x141/0x2b0 [ 141.429126] ? mntput_no_expire+0x4a/0x240 [ 141.429363] ? syscall_trace_enter.isra.19+0x126/0x1a0 [ 141.429653] do_syscall_64+0x5b/0x80 [ 141.429847] ? exit_to_user_mode_prepare+0x14d/0x1c0 [ 141.430109] ? syscall_exit_to_user_mode+0x12/0x30 [ 141.430849] ? do_syscall_64+0x67/0x80 [ 141.431083] ? syscall_exit_to_user_mode_prepare+0x183/0x1b0 [ 141.431770] ? syscall_exit_to_user_mode+0x12/0x30 [ 141.432482] ? do_syscall_64+0x67/0x80 [ 141.432714] ? exc_page_fault+0x64/0x140 [ 141.432911] entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x72/0xdc Since the igb_disable_sriov() will call pci_disable_sriov() before releasing any resources, the netdev core will synchronize the cleanup to avoid any races. This patch removes the useless rtnl_(un)lock to guarantee correctness.

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
How this class of weakness works · CWE-667

Shared resources are accessed without correct locking, so concurrent operations interleave into inconsistent — and sometimes exploitable — states, or deadlock the service outright. These bugs are subtle and timing-dependent. The fix is correct, consistent locking or atomic operations around every shared resource.

General guidance for the improper locking class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

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
Linux KernelOperating system
Affected:>= 4.14.291, < 4.14.312>= 4.19.256, < 4.19.280>= 5.4.211, < 5.4.240>= 5.10.138, < 5.10.177>= 5.15.63, < 5.15.105>= 5.19.4, < 6.0>= 6.0.1, < 6.1.22>= 6.2, < 6.2.9= 6.0= 6.3

CVSS 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
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

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 · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 4.14.312 / 4.19.280 / 5.4.240 or later
Fixed in 4.14.3124.19.2805.4.240
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Linux Kernel 4.14.312+, 4.19.280+, 5.4.240+, or 5.10.177+ (choose the appropriate stable branch for your distribution)

  1. Verify the current kernel version using `uname -r` or `cat /proc/version`
  2. Confirm the affected kernel version falls within one of the vulnerable ranges: 4.14.291-4.14.311, 4.19.256-4.19.279, 5.4.211-5.4.239, or 5.10.138-5.10.176
  3. Schedule a maintenance window for the kernel upgrade
  4. Update the system package manager (e.g., `apt update && apt upgrade` for Debian/Ubuntu, or `yum update` for RHEL/CentOS)
  5. Reboot the system to load the new kernel using `reboot`
  6. After reboot, verify the new kernel version is >= the fixed release (4.14.312, 4.19.280, 5.4.240, or 5.10.177) using `uname -r`
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require driver recompilation or system reboots; ensure dependent modules and custom drivers are compatible with the new kernel version

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

We can perform the upgrade in your staging environment and verify nothing breaks — typical engagement from $1,600. Get the upgrade done

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-53060 — 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 sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-53060 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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