NVD / CVE Program· CNA Linux

CVE-2023-53153: wifi: cfg80211: Fix use after free for wext

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 31/100)

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: 0.16% (FIRST EPSS).
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 015b8cc5e7c4d7bb671f1984d7b7338c310b185b, 22dfb21bf1cd876616d45cda1bc6daa89eec6747, 2cfe78619b0de6d2da773978bc2d22797212eaa7.

Low priority for now. Upgrade to Linux Linux 015b8cc5e7c4d7bb671f1984d7b7338c310b185b, 22dfb21bf1cd876616d45cda1bc6daa89eec6747, 2cfe78619b0de6d2da773978bc2d22797212eaa7 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: wifi: cfg80211: Fix use after free for wext Key information in wext.connect is not reset on (re)connect and can hold data from a previous connection. Reset key data to avoid that drivers or mac80211 incorrectly detect a WEP connection request and access the freed or already reused memory. Additionally optimize cfg80211_sme_connect() and avoid an useless schedule of conn_work.

HighCVSS 7.8 · v3.1—No exploit Fix available

Memory safety

BDU:2026-05738

Published: Sep 15, 2025
Updated: Jun 17, 2026
EPSS: 0.1% · 5th percentile
CWE: CWE-416

Report tools

JSON

Action score

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS: 31 / 40 · 7.8 / 10
CISA KEV: 0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS: 0 / 30 · 0.1%

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

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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.

Vendor	Product	CPE
linux	linux kernel	cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel

Affected versions

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

linux linux kernel2.6.32 and later · before 4.14.308
linux linux kernel4.15 and later · before 4.19.276
linux linux kernel4.20 and later · before 5.4.235
linux linux kernel5.5 and later · before 5.10.173
linux linux kernel5.11 and later · before 5.15.99
linux linux kernel5.16 and later · before 6.1.16
linux linux kernel6.2 and later · before 6.2.3

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
- 2.6.32affected
- fffd0934b9390f34bec45762192b7edd3b12b4b5 and later · before 66af4a2ab1d65d556d638cb9555a3b823c2557a9affected · git
- fffd0934b9390f34bec45762192b7edd3b12b4b5 and later · before a2a92b3e9d8e03ee3f9ee407fc46a9b4bd02d8b6affected · git
- fffd0934b9390f34bec45762192b7edd3b12b4b5 and later · before 6f1959c17d4cb5b74af6fc31dc787e1dc3e4f6e2affected · git
- fffd0934b9390f34bec45762192b7edd3b12b4b5 and later · before 2cfe78619b0de6d2da773978bc2d22797212eaa7affected · git
- fffd0934b9390f34bec45762192b7edd3b12b4b5 and later · before fd081afd21eb35b968b0330700c43ec94986e1c4affected · git
- fffd0934b9390f34bec45762192b7edd3b12b4b5 and later · before 22dfb21bf1cd876616d45cda1bc6daa89eec6747affected · git
- fffd0934b9390f34bec45762192b7edd3b12b4b5 and later · before f4b6a138efb8a32507b8946104e32cb926308da7affected · git
- fffd0934b9390f34bec45762192b7edd3b12b4b5 and later · before 015b8cc5e7c4d7bb671f1984d7b7338c310b185baffected · git
- before 2.6.32not affected · semver

Package-level exposure

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

Ecosystem	Package	Affected range	Fix
Debian:12	linux	before 6.1.20-1	6.1.20-1

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-2023-53151Sep 15, 2025 · md/raid10: prevent soft lockup while flush writes
22Monitor
← EarlierCVE-2023-53152Sep 15, 2025 · drm/amdgpu: fix calltrace warning in amddrm_buddy_fini
22Monitor
Later →CVE-2023-53163Sep 15, 2025 · fs/ntfs3: don't hold ni_lock when calling truncate_setsize()
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 / package	Fixed version	Source
Linux Linux	015b8cc5e7c4d7bb671f1984d7b7338c310b185b	Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux	22dfb21bf1cd876616d45cda1bc6daa89eec6747	Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux	2cfe78619b0de6d2da773978bc2d22797212eaa7	Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux	66af4a2ab1d65d556d638cb9555a3b823c2557a9	Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux	6f1959c17d4cb5b74af6fc31dc787e1dc3e4f6e2	Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux	a2a92b3e9d8e03ee3f9ee407fc46a9b4bd02d8b6	Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux	f4b6a138efb8a32507b8946104e32cb926308da7	Vendor (CNA)
Linux Linux	fd081afd21eb35b968b0330700c43ec94986e1c4	Vendor (CNA)
debian:linux	6.1.20-1 · Debian:12	Package 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.

EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

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: high · data can be read
Integrity: high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability: high · the service can be disrupted

Attack vector: Local
Attack complexity: Low
Privileges required: Low
User interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality impact: High
Integrity impact: High
Availability impact: High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-416 · Use After Free

CVSS vector

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

nvd-primary

Root cause

After a memory region is freed, another reference pointing to it is still used. By then, the same region may have been allocated for different data.

The bug in code

The whole CWE-416 class

A representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.

Vulnerable

1free(dev->buf);
2/* ... another thread is still running ... */
3process(dev->buf);

Fixed

1lock(&dev->lock);
2free(dev->buf);
3dev->buf = NULL;
4unlock(&dev->lock);

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

Fix✗ → ✓Sep 28, 2026, 10:09 PM UTC

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

References

git.kernel.org/stable/c/015b8cc5e7c4d7bb671f1984d7b7338c310b185b

Show all references (7 more)

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

All records