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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2023-53140

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-05-02
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 4.19.278 / 5.4.237 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: scsi: core: Remove the /proc/scsi/${proc_name} directory earlier Remove the /proc/scsi/${proc_name} directory earlier to fix a race condition between unloading and reloading kernel modules. This fixes a bug introduced in 2009 by commit 77c019768f06 ("[SCSI] fix /proc memory leak in the SCSI core"). Fix the following kernel warning: proc_dir_entry 'scsi/scsi_debug' already registered WARNING: CPU: 19 PID: 27986 at fs/proc/generic.c:376 proc_register+0x27d/0x2e0 Call Trace: proc_mkdir+0xb5/0xe0 scsi_proc_hostdir_add+0xb5/0x170 scsi_host_alloc+0x683/0x6c0 sdebug_driver_probe+0x6b/0x2d0 [scsi_debug] really_probe+0x159/0x540 __driver_probe_device+0xdc/0x230 driver_probe_device+0x4f/0x120 __device_attach_driver+0xef/0x180 bus_for_each_drv+0xe5/0x130 __device_attach+0x127/0x290 device_initial_probe+0x17/0x20 bus_probe_device+0x110/0x130 device_add+0x673/0xc80 device_register+0x1e/0x30 sdebug_add_host_helper+0x1a7/0x3b0 [scsi_debug] scsi_debug_init+0x64f/0x1000 [scsi_debug] do_one_initcall+0xd7/0x470 do_init_module+0xe7/0x330 load_module+0x122a/0x12c0 __do_sys_finit_module+0x124/0x1a0 __x64_sys_finit_module+0x46/0x50 do_syscall_64+0x38/0x80 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x46/0xb0

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-401

Allocated memory is never released on some path, so a long-running service or a repeatedly triggered request steadily consumes memory until performance degrades or the process crashes. Attackers exploit it by simply driving the leaking path. Remediation is pairing every allocation with a release and using ownership patterns or tooling to catch what leaks.

General guidance for the memory leak 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:>= 2.6.30, < 4.19.278>= 4.20, < 5.4.237>= 5.5, < 5.10.175>= 5.11, < 5.15.103>= 5.16, < 6.1.20>= 6.2, < 6.2.7

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 4.19.278 / 5.4.237 / 5.10.175 or later
Fixed in 4.19.2785.4.2375.10.175
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

4.19.278+ / 5.4.237+ / 5.10.175+ / 5.15.103+ (depending on which kernel branch is in use)

  1. Upgrade the Linux kernel to a version that includes the fix commit 13daafe1e209b03e9bda16ff2bd2b2da145a139b
  2. For 4.19.x kernels: upgrade to 4.19.278 or later
  3. For 5.4.x kernels: upgrade to 5.4.237 or later
  4. For 5.10.x kernels: upgrade to 5.10.175 or later
  5. For 5.15.x kernels: upgrade to 5.15.103 or later
  6. Reboot the system to load the patched kernel
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require rebuilding out-of-tree kernel modules; ensure compatibility of driver modules 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

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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-2023-53140 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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