Linux KernelOperating system · Linux
CVE-2024-53198
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: xen: Fix the issue of resource not being properly released in xenbus_dev_probe() This patch fixes an issue in the function xenbus_dev_probe(). In the xenbus_dev_probe() function, within the if (err) branch at line 313, the program incorrectly returns err directly without releasing the resources allocated by err = drv->probe(dev, id). As the return value is non-zero, the upper layers assume the processing logic has failed. However, the probe operation was performed earlier without a corresponding remove operation. Since the probe actually allocates resources, failing to perform the remove operation could lead to problems. To fix this issue, we followed the resource release logic of the xenbus_dev_remove() function by adding a new block fail_remove before the fail_put block. After entering the branch if (err) at line 313, the function will use a goto statement to jump to the fail_remove block, ensuring that the previously acquired resources are correctly released, thus preventing the reference count leak. This bug was identified by an experimental static analysis tool developed by our team. The tool specializes in analyzing reference count operations and detecting potential issues where resources are not properly managed. In this case, the tool flagged the missing release operation as a potential problem, which led to the development of this patch.
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 analysisAllocated 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
>= 2.6.23, < 5.4.287>= 5.5, < 5.10.231>= 5.11, < 5.15.174>= 5.16, < 6.1.120>= 6.2, < 6.6.64>= 6.7, < 6.11.11>= 6.12, < 6.12.2CVSS 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 · scoped5.4.2875.10.2315.15.174
Kernel versions >= 5.4.287, >= 5.10.231, >= 5.15.174, or >= 6.1.120 depending on your branch
- Identify the current kernel version using `uname -r` or `cat /proc/version`
- Determine which version branch your current kernel belongs to (e.g., 5.15.x, 6.1.x, etc.)
- Upgrade the Linux kernel to a fixed version: 5.4.287 or later for 5.4.x, 5.10.231 or later for 5.10.x, 5.15.174 or later for 5.15.x, or 6.1.120 or later for 6.1.x
- For enterprise distributions, apply the vendor-provided kernel update via package manager (e.g., `apt update && apt upgrade linux-image` for Debian/Ubuntu, `yum update kernel` for RHEL/CentOS, or `dnf update kernel` for Fedora)
- Reboot the system to load the patched kernel
- Verify the fix is applied by checking the kernel version and confirming the xenbus code includes the fail_remove block
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-2024-53198 — 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-2024-53198 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
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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