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NVD / CVE Program· CNA Linux

CVE-2023-52991: net: fix NULL pointer in skb_segment_list

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 22/100)

  • The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.64% (FIRST EPSS); higher than 51.1% of all records.
  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it. A low-privileged account is enough. No user action is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
  • Fixed version: Linux Linux 046de74f9af92ae9ffce75fa22a1795223f4fb54, 6446369fb9f083ce032448c5047da08e298b22e6, 876e8ca8366735a604bac86ff7e2732fc9d85d2d.
  • Severity is disputed: the assigning authority (CNA) scores it 7.5, NVD 5.5.

Low priority for now. Upgrade to Linux Linux 046de74f9af92ae9ffce75fa22a1795223f4fb54, 6446369fb9f083ce032448c5047da08e298b22e6, 876e8ca8366735a604bac86ff7e2732fc9d85d2d or later.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: fix NULL pointer in skb_segment_list Commit 3a1296a38d0c ("net: Support GRO/GSO fraglist chaining.") introduced UDP listifyed GRO. The segmentation relies on frag_list being untouched when passing through the network stack. This assumption can be broken sometimes, where frag_list itself gets pulled into linear area, leaving frag_list being NULL. When this happens it can trigger following NULL pointer dereference, and panic the kernel. Reverse the test condition should fix it. [19185.577801][ C1] BUG: kernel NULL pointer dereference, address: ... [19185.663775][ C1] RIP: 0010:skb_segment_list+0x1cc/0x390 ... [19185.834644][ C1] Call Trace: [19185.841730][ C1] <TASK> [19185.848563][ C1] __udp_gso_segment+0x33e/0x510 [19185.857370][ C1] inet_gso_segment+0x15b/0x3e0 [19185.866059][ C1] skb_mac_gso_segment+0x97/0x110 [19185.874939][ C1] __skb_gso_segment+0xb2/0x160 [19185.883646][ C1] udp_queue_rcv_skb+0xc3/0x1d0 [19185.892319][ C1] udp_unicast_rcv_skb+0x75/0x90 [19185.900979][ C1] ip_protocol_deliver_rcu+0xd2/0x200 [19185.910003][ C1] ip_local_deliver_finish+0x44/0x60 [19185.918757][ C1] __netif_receive_skb_one_core+0x8b/0xa0 [19185.927834][ C1] process_backlog+0x88/0x130 [19185.935840][ C1] __napi_poll+0x27/0x150 [19185.943447][ C1] net_rx_action+0x27e/0x5f0 [19185.951331][ C1] ? mlx5_cq_tasklet_cb+0x70/0x160 [mlx5_core] [19185.960848][ C1] __do_softirq+0xbc/0x25d [19185.968607][ C1] irq_exit_rcu+0x83/0xb0 [19185.976247][ C1] common_interrupt+0x43/0xa0 [19185.984235][ C1] asm_common_interrupt+0x22/0x40 ... [19186.094106][ C1] </TASK>

MediumCVSS 5.5 · v3.1—No exploit Fix available
Published
Mar 27, 2025
Updated
Aug 5, 2026
EPSS
0.6% · 51th percentile

Report tools

JSON

Action score

22

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
22 / 40 · 5.5 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.6%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
none
Automatable
no
Technical impact
partial

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

CNA vs NVD score

NVD
5.5
CNA · Linux
7.5
2.0 point gap

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

The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.

Get told when this record changes

  • Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
  • No public exploit code on record
  • A fix has been released

If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.

Follow CVE-2023-52991

When you'll hear from us

  • when it enters CISA KEV
  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
  • when the record is updated (including a fixed version)
  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

VendorProduct
linuxlinux kernel

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • linux linux kernel5.6 and later · before 5.10.167
  • linux linux kernel5.11 and later · before 5.15.92
  • linux linux kernel5.16 and later · before 6.1.10
  • linux linux kernel6.2

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (Linux). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • Linux Linux

    • 5.6affected
    • 3a1296a38d0cf62bffb9a03c585cbd5dbf15d596 and later · before 6446369fb9f083ce032448c5047da08e298b22e6affected · git
    • 3a1296a38d0cf62bffb9a03c585cbd5dbf15d596 and later · before 046de74f9af92ae9ffce75fa22a1795223f4fb54affected · git
    • 3a1296a38d0cf62bffb9a03c585cbd5dbf15d596 and later · before 888dad6f3e85e3b2f8389bd6478f181efc72534daffected · git
    • 3a1296a38d0cf62bffb9a03c585cbd5dbf15d596 and later · before 876e8ca8366735a604bac86ff7e2732fc9d85d2daffected · git
    • before 5.6not affected · semver
    • 5.10.167 and later · up to and including 5.10.*not affected · semver
    • 5.15.92 and later · up to and including 5.15.*not affected · semver
    • 6.1.10 and later · up to and including 6.1.*not affected · semver
    • 6.2 and laternot affected · original_commit_for_fix

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Debian:12linuxbefore 6.1.11-16.1.11-1

Same product

linux: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2026-31431crypto: algif_aead - Revert to operating out-of-placeKEV
    90Now
  • CVE-2022-0847A flaw was found in the way the "flags" member of the new pipe buffer structure was lacking proper initialization in copy_page_to_iter_pipe KEV
    89Now
  • CVE-2021-22555Heap Out-Of-Bounds Write in Netfilter IP6T_SO_SET_REPLACEKEV
    85Now

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2023-52988Mar 27, 2025 · ALSA: hda/via: Avoid potential array out-of-bound in add_secret_dac_path()
    31Monitor
  • ← EarlierCVE-2023-52989Mar 27, 2025 · firewire: fix memory leak for payload of request subaction to IEC 61883-1 FCP region
    22Monitor
  • Later →CVE-2023-52993Mar 27, 2025 · x86/i8259: Mark legacy PIC interrupts with IRQ_LEVEL
    22Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
Linux Linux046de74f9af92ae9ffce75fa22a1795223f4fb54Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux6446369fb9f083ce032448c5047da08e298b22e6Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux876e8ca8366735a604bac86ff7e2732fc9d85d2dVendor (CNA)
Linux Linux888dad6f3e85e3b2f8389bd6478f181efc72534dVendor (CNA)
debian:linux6.1.11-1 · Debian:12Package registry (OSV)

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

No dated events beyond publication.

No history yet (it accumulates with the daily EPSS job).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it.
  • A low-privileged account is enough.
  • No user action is required.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
none
Integrity
none
Availability
high · the service can be disrupted
Attack vector
Local
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
None
Integrity impact
None
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-476 · NULL Pointer Dereference

CVSS vector

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

nvd-primary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.

Change log

  1. Fix✗ → ✓

For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →

References

Show all references (3 more)

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records