Linux KernelOperating system · Linux
CVE-2023-53222
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 · uneditedIn the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: jfs: jfs_dmap: Validate db_l2nbperpage while mounting In jfs_dmap.c at line 381, BLKTODMAP is used to get a logical block number inside dbFree(). db_l2nbperpage, which is the log2 number of blocks per page, is passed as an argument to BLKTODMAP which uses it for shifting. Syzbot reported a shift out-of-bounds crash because db_l2nbperpage is too big. This happens because the large value is set without any validation in dbMount() at line 181. Thus, make sure that db_l2nbperpage is correct while mounting. Max number of blocks per page = Page size / Min block size => log2(Max num_block per page) = log2(Page size / Min block size) = log2(Page size) - log2(Min block size) => Max db_l2nbperpage = L2PSIZE - L2MINBLOCKSIZE
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 analysisThe code reads past the end (or before the start) of a buffer, returning memory that was never meant to be exposed. Attackers use it to leak secrets like keys or to defeat memory-protection defences. Remediation is validating indices and lengths before every read.
General guidance for the out-of-bounds read 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
< 4.14.322>= 4.15, < 4.19.291>= 4.20, < 5.4.251>= 5.5, < 5.10.188>= 5.11, < 5.15.121>= 5.16, < 6.1.40>= 6.2, < 6.4.5CVSS 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
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/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 · scoped4.14.3224.19.2915.4.251
4.14.322+, 4.19.291+, 5.4.251+, or 5.10.188+ (depending on your current version branch)
- Identify the currently running kernel version using `uname -r`
- Determine which version branch your kernel belongs to (4.14.x, 4.19.x, 5.4.x, or 5.10.x)
- For kernels < 4.14: upgrade to 4.14.322 or later
- For kernels >= 4.15 and < 4.19: upgrade to 4.19.291 or later
- For kernels >= 4.20 and < 5.4: upgrade to 5.4.251 or later
- For kernels >= 5.5 and < 5.10: upgrade to 5.10.188 or later
- Alternatively, apply the vendor patch from commit 11509910c599cbd04585ec35a6d5e1a0053d84c1 which adds validation for db_l2nbperpage in jfs_dmap.c dbMount()
- Reboot the system to load the fixed kernel
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-53222 — 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-2023-53222 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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