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5th Gen Gpu Architecture Kernel DriverApplication · Arm

CVE-2023-5643

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-02-05
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
Zero-click

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
Out-of-bounds Write vulnerability in Arm Ltd Bifrost GPU Kernel Driver, Arm Ltd Valhall GPU Kernel Driver, Arm Ltd Arm 5th Gen GPU Architecture Kernel Driver allows a local non-privileged user to make improper GPU memory processing operations. Depending on the configuration of the Mali GPU Kernel Driver, and if the system’s memory is carefully prepared by the user, then this in turn could write to memory outside of buffer bounds.This issue affects Bifrost GPU Kernel Driver: from r41p0 through r45p0; Valhall GPU Kernel Driver: from r41p0 through r45p0; Arm 5th Gen GPU Architecture Kernel Driver: from r41p0 through r45p0.

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 confidence

Out-of-bounds write vulnerability in Arm Mali GPU kernel drivers (Bifrost, Valhall, 5th Gen) allows a local non-privileged user to perform improper GPU memory processing operations that can write beyond buffer boundaries, potentially leading to privilege escalation or system compromise.

MitigationUpdate Mali GPU kernel drivers from r41p0-r45p0 to patched versions beyond r45p0. Review systems for affected GPU configurations and implement driver/firmware updates.

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
5th Gen Gpu Architecture Kernel DriverApplication
Affected:>= r41p0, < r46p0
Bifrost Gpu Kernel DriverApplication
Affected:>= r41p0, < r46p0
Valhall Gpu Kernel DriverApplication
Affected:>= r41p0, < r46p0

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
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify if Mali GPU kernel drivers are loaded
    Run 'lsmod | grep -i mali' to list loaded Mali GPU kernel modules on the system
    Affected if Mali GPU kernel modules (bifrost, valhall, or related) appear in the loaded module list
  2. Query the Mali GPU driver version
    Run 'modinfo <mali_module_name>' (commonly 'mali_bifrost', 'mali_valhall', or 'mali') to retrieve driver version information from the module
    Affected if The driver version reported is r41p0 or higher but lower than r46p0 (e.g., r42p0, r43p0, r44p0, r45p0)
  3. Check for alternative version reporting
    Examine /sys/class/misc/ or /sys/bus/platform/drivers/ for Mali GPU version files, or check dmesg output for Mali driver initialization messages
    Affected if Version information indicates a version in the range r41p0 to r45p0 inclusive

A system is affected if it runs an Arm Mali GPU kernel driver (Bifrost, Valhall, or 5th Gen) with a version between r41p0 and r45p0 inclusive.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update Mali GPU kernel drivers from r41p0-r45p0 to patched versions beyond r45p0. Review systems for affected GPU configurations and implement driver/firmware updates.

Recommended fix High confidence

r46p0 or later (Mali GPU Kernel Driver)

  1. Identify the current Mali GPU kernel driver version installed on the system
  2. Obtain the Mali GPU kernel driver version r46p0 or later from Arm's official developer resources (developer.arm.com)
  3. Update the Mali GPU kernel driver to version r46p0 or newer
  4. Reboot the system to load the updated driver
  5. Verify the driver version has been updated to r46p0 or later
Caveat Kernel driver updates may require system reboot and could have compatibility implications with existing user-space GPU applications

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

Fix this in 5th Gen Gpu Architecture Kernel Driver Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
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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-2023-5643 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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