Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2023-53393

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-09-18
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.15.87 / 6.0.19 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: RDMA/mlx5: Fix mlx5_ib_get_hw_stats when used for device Currently, when mlx5_ib_get_hw_stats() is used for device (port_num = 0), there is a special handling in order to use the correct counters, but, port_num is being passed down the stack without any change. Also, some functions assume that port_num >=1. As a result, the following oops can occur. BUG: unable to handle page fault for address: ffff89510294f1a8 #PF: supervisor write access in kernel mode #PF: error_code(0x0002) - not-present page PGD 0 P4D 0 Oops: 0002 [#1] SMP CPU: 8 PID: 1382 Comm: devlink Tainted: G W 6.1.0-rc4_for_upstream_base_2022_11_10_16_12 #1 Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), BIOS rel-1.13.0-0-gf21b5a4aeb02-prebuilt.qemu.org 04/01/2014 RIP: 0010:_raw_spin_lock+0xc/0x20 Call Trace: <TASK> mlx5_ib_get_native_port_mdev+0x73/0xe0 [mlx5_ib] do_get_hw_stats.constprop.0+0x109/0x160 [mlx5_ib] mlx5_ib_get_hw_stats+0xad/0x180 [mlx5_ib] ib_setup_device_attrs+0xf0/0x290 [ib_core] ib_register_device+0x3bb/0x510 [ib_core] ? atomic_notifier_chain_register+0x67/0x80 __mlx5_ib_add+0x2b/0x80 [mlx5_ib] mlx5r_probe+0xb8/0x150 [mlx5_ib] ? auxiliary_match_id+0x6a/0x90 auxiliary_bus_probe+0x3c/0x70 ? driver_sysfs_add+0x6b/0x90 really_probe+0xcd/0x380 __driver_probe_device+0x80/0x170 driver_probe_device+0x1e/0x90 __device_attach_driver+0x7d/0x100 ? driver_allows_async_probing+0x60/0x60 ? driver_allows_async_probing+0x60/0x60 bus_for_each_drv+0x7b/0xc0 __device_attach+0xbc/0x200 bus_probe_device+0x87/0xa0 device_add+0x404/0x940 ? dev_set_name+0x53/0x70 __auxiliary_device_add+0x43/0x60 add_adev+0x99/0xe0 [mlx5_core] mlx5_attach_device+0xc8/0x120 [mlx5_core] mlx5_load_one_devl_locked+0xb2/0xe0 [mlx5_core] devlink_reload+0x133/0x250 devlink_nl_cmd_reload+0x480/0x570 ? devlink_nl_pre_doit+0x44/0x2b0 genl_family_rcv_msg_doit.isra.0+0xc2/0x110 genl_rcv_msg+0x180/0x2b0 ? devlink_nl_cmd_region_read_dumpit+0x540/0x540 ? devlink_reload+0x250/0x250 ? devlink_put+0x50/0x50 ? genl_family_rcv_msg_doit.isra.0+0x110/0x110 netlink_rcv_skb+0x54/0x100 genl_rcv+0x24/0x40 netlink_unicast+0x1f6/0x2c0 netlink_sendmsg+0x237/0x490 sock_sendmsg+0x33/0x40 __sys_sendto+0x103/0x160 ? handle_mm_fault+0x10e/0x290 ? do_user_addr_fault+0x1c0/0x5f0 __x64_sys_sendto+0x25/0x30 do_syscall_64+0x3d/0x90 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x46/0xb0 Fix it by setting port_num to 1 in order to get device status and remove unused variable.

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

A detailed technical summary for this CVE is being prepared.

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:>= 4.16, < 5.15.87>= 5.16, < 6.0.19>= 6.1, < 6.1.5= 6.2

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 5.15.87 / 6.0.19 / 6.1.5 or later
Fixed in 5.15.876.0.196.1.5
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to one of: Linux 5.15.87+, 6.0.19+, 6.1.5+, or 6.2.1+ (or later stable releases)

  1. 1. Identify the currently running kernel version using `uname -r` or `cat /proc/version`
  2. 2. For systems running kernel >= 4.16 and < 5.15.87: upgrade to kernel version 5.15.87 or later in the 5.15.x series
  3. 3. For systems running kernel >= 5.16 and < 6.0.19: upgrade to kernel version 6.0.19 or later in the 6.0.x series
  4. 4. For systems running kernel >= 6.1 and < 6.1.5: upgrade to kernel version 6.1.5 or later in the 6.1.x series
  5. 5. For systems running kernel 6.2.x: upgrade to kernel version 6.2.1 or later, or to the next stable release (e.g., 6.3.x)
  6. 6. After kernel upgrade, reboot the system to load the fixed kernel
  7. 7. Verify the fix is applied by checking the kernel version and confirming mlx5_ib module loads without the previous oops
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require matching driver versions and could introduce compatibility changes with userspace tools; ensure RDMA/MLX5 userspace utilities 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

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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

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