Highly exploitable, CVE-2023-53621 poses a critical security risk that could lead to severe breaches.
Status: Analyzed
Last updated: 🕝 05 Feb 2026, 14:48 UTC
Originally published on: 🕓 07 Oct 2025, 16:15 UTC
Time between publication and last update: 120 days
CVSS Release: version 3
nvd@nist.gov
Primary
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CVE-2023-53621: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: memcontrol: ensure memcg acquired by id is properly set up In the eviction recency check, we attempt to retrieve the memcg to which the folio belonged when it was evicted, by the memcg id stored in the shadow entry. However, there is a chance that the retrieved memcg is not the original memcg that has been killed, but a new one which happens to have the same id. This is a somewhat unfortunate, but acceptable and rare inaccuracy in the heuristics. However, if we retrieve this new memcg between its allocation and when it is properly attached to the memcg hierarchy, we could run into the following NULL pointer exception during the memcg hierarchy traversal done in mem_cgroup_get_nr_swap_pages(): [ 155757.793456] BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: 00000000000000c0 [ 155757.807568] #PF: supervisor read access in kernel mode [ 155757.818024] #PF: error_code(0x0000) - not-present page [ 155757.828482] PGD 401f77067 P4D 401f77067 PUD 401f76067 PMD 0 [ 155757.839985] Oops: 0000 [#1] SMP [ 155757.887870] RIP: 0010:mem_cgroup_get_nr_swap_pages+0x3d/0xb0 [ 155757.899377] Code: 29 19 4a 02 48 39 f9 74 63 48 8b 97 c0 00 00 00 48 8b b7 58 02 00 00 48 2b b7 c0 01 00 00 48 39 f0 48 0f 4d c6 48 39 d1 74 42 <48> 8b b2 c0 00 00 00 48 8b ba 58 02 00 00 48 2b ba c0 01 00 00 48 [ 155757.937125] RSP: 0018:ffffc9002ecdfbc8 EFLAGS: 00010286 [ 155757.947755] RAX: 00000000003a3b1c RBX: 000007ffffffffff RCX: ffff888280183000 [ 155757.962202] RDX: 0000000000000000 RSI: 0007ffffffffffff RDI: ffff888bbc2d1000 [ 155757.976648] RBP: 0000000000000001 R08: 000000000000000b R09: ffff888ad9cedba0 [ 155757.991094] R10: ffffea0039c07900 R11: 0000000000000010 R12: ffff888b23a7b000 [ 155758.005540] R13: 0000000000000000 R14: ffff888bbc2d1000 R15: 000007ffffc71354 [ 155758.019991] FS: 00007f6234c68640(0000) GS:ffff88903f9c0000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 [ 155758.036356] CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 [ 155758.048023] CR2: 00000000000000c0 CR3: 0000000a83eb8004 CR4: 00000000007706e0 [ 155758.062473] DR0: 0000000000000000 DR1: 0000000000000000 DR2: 0000000000000000 [ 155758.076924] DR3: 0000000000000000 DR6: 00000000fffe0ff0 DR7: 0000000000000400 [ 155758.091376] PKRU: 55555554 [ 155758.096957] Call Trace: [ 155758.102016] <TASK> [ 155758.106502] ? __die+0x78/0xc0 [ 155758.112793] ? page_fault_oops+0x286/0x380 [ 155758.121175] ? exc_page_fault+0x5d/0x110 [ 155758.129209] ? asm_exc_page_fault+0x22/0x30 [ 155758.137763] ? mem_cgroup_get_nr_swap_pages+0x3d/0xb0 [ 155758.148060] workingset_test_recent+0xda/0x1b0 [ 155758.157133] workingset_refault+0xca/0x1e0 [ 155758.165508] filemap_add_folio+0x4d/0x70 [ 155758.173538] page_cache_ra_unbounded+0xed/0x190 [ 155758.182919] page_cache_sync_ra+0xd6/0x1e0 [ 155758.191738] filemap_read+0x68d/0xdf0 [ 155758.199495] ? mlx5e_napi_poll+0x123/0x940 [ 155758.207981] ? __napi_schedule+0x55/0x90 [ 155758.216095] __x64_sys_pread64+0x1d6/0x2c0 [ 155758.224601] do_syscall_64+0x3d/0x80 [ 155758.232058] entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x46/0xb0 [ 155758.242473] RIP: 0033:0x7f62c29153b5 [ 155758.249938] Code: e8 48 89 75 f0 89 7d f8 48 89 4d e0 e8 b4 e6 f7 ff 41 89 c0 4c 8b 55 e0 48 8b 55 e8 48 8b 75 f0 8b 7d f8 b8 11 00 00 00 0f 05 <48> 3d 00 f0 ff ff 77 33 44 89 c7 48 89 45 f8 e8 e7 e6 f7 ff 48 8b [ 155758.288005] RSP: 002b:00007f6234c5ffd0 EFLAGS: 00000293 ORIG_RAX: 0000000000000011 [ 155758.303474] RAX: ffffffffffffffda RBX: 00007f628c4e70c0 RCX: 00007f62c29153b5 [ 155758.318075] RDX: 000000000003c041 RSI: 00007f61d2986000 RDI: 0000000000000076 [ 155758.332678] RBP: 00007f6234c5fff0 R08: 0000000000000000 R09: 0000000064d5230c [ 155758.347452] R10: 000000000027d450 R11: 0000000000000293 R12: 000000000003c041 [ 155758.362044] R13: 00007f61d2986000 R14: 00007f629e11b060 R15: 000000000027d450 [ 155758.376661] </TASK> This patch fixes the issue by moving the memcg's id publication from the alloc stage to ---truncated---
The exploitability of CVE-2023-53621 depends on two key factors: attack complexity (the level of effort required to execute an exploit) and privileges required (the access level an attacker needs).
CVE-2023-53621 presents an accessible attack vector with minimal effort required. Restricting access controls and implementing security updates are critical to reducing exploitation risks.
A lower complexity and fewer privilege requirements make exploitation easier. Security teams should evaluate these aspects to determine the urgency of mitigation strategies, such as patch management and access control policies.
Attack Complexity (AC) measures the difficulty in executing an exploit. A high AC means that specific conditions must be met, making an attack more challenging, while a low AC means the vulnerability can be exploited with minimal effort.
Privileges Required (PR) determine the level of system access necessary for an attack. Vulnerabilities requiring no privileges are more accessible to attackers, whereas high privilege requirements limit exploitation to authorized users with elevated access.
Above is the CVSS Sub-score Breakdown for CVE-2023-53621, illustrating how Base, Impact, and Exploitability factors combine to form the overall severity rating. A higher sub-score typically indicates a more severe or easier-to-exploit vulnerability.
Below is the Impact Analysis for CVE-2023-53621, showing how Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability might be affected if the vulnerability is exploited. Higher values usually signal greater potential damage.
Stay updated with real-time CVE vulnerabilities and take action to secure your systems. Enhance your cybersecurity posture with the latest threat intelligence and mitigation techniques. Develop the skills necessary to defend against CVEs and secure critical infrastructures. Join the top cybersecurity professionals safeguarding today's infrastructures.