CVE-2023-53556

  • Published: 2025-10-04T16:15:50.927

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

iavf: Fix use-after-free in free_netdev

We do netif_napi_add() for all allocated q_vectors[], but potentially
do netif_napi_del() for part of them, then kfree q_vectors and leave
invalid pointers at dev->napi_list.

Reproducer:

[root@host ~]# cat repro.sh
#!/bin/bash

pf_dbsf=”0000:41:00.0″
vf0_dbsf=”0000:41:02.0″
g_pids=()

function do_set_numvf()
{
echo 2 >/sys/bus/pci/devices/${pf_dbsf}/sriov_numvfs
sleep $((RANDOM%3+1))
echo 0 >/sys/bus/pci/devices/${pf_dbsf}/sriov_numvfs
sleep $((RANDOM%3+1))
}

function do_set_channel()
{
local nic=$(ls -1 –indicator-style=none /sys/bus/pci/devices/${vf0_dbsf}/net/)
[ -z “$nic” ] && { sleep $((RANDOM%3)) ; return 1; }
ifconfig $nic 192.168.18.5 netmask 255.255.255.0
ifconfig $nic up
ethtool -L $nic combined 1
ethtool -L $nic combined 4
sleep $((RANDOM%3))
}

function on_exit()
{
local pid
for pid in “${g_pids[@]}”; do
kill -0 “$pid” &>/dev/null && kill “$pid” &>/dev/null
done
g_pids=()
}

trap “on_exit; exit” EXIT

while :; do do_set_numvf ; done &
g_pids+=($!)
while :; do do_set_channel ; done &
g_pids+=($!)

wait

Result:

[ 4093.900222] ==================================================================
[ 4093.900230] BUG: KASAN: use-after-free in free_netdev+0x308/0x390
[ 4093.900232] Read of size 8 at addr ffff88b4dc145640 by task repro.sh/6699
[ 4093.900233]
[ 4093.900236] CPU: 10 PID: 6699 Comm: repro.sh Kdump: loaded Tainted: G O ——— -t – 4.18.0 #1
[ 4093.900238] Hardware name: Powerleader PR2008AL/H12DSi-N6, BIOS 2.0 04/09/2021
[ 4093.900239] Call Trace:
[ 4093.900244] dump_stack+0x71/0xab
[ 4093.900249] print_address_description+0x6b/0x290
[ 4093.900251] ? free_netdev+0x308/0x390
[ 4093.900252] kasan_report+0x14a/0x2b0
[ 4093.900254] free_netdev+0x308/0x390
[ 4093.900261] iavf_remove+0x825/0xd20 [iavf]
[ 4093.900265] pci_device_remove+0xa8/0x1f0
[ 4093.900268] device_release_driver_internal+0x1c6/0x460
[ 4093.900271] pci_stop_bus_device+0x101/0x150
[ 4093.900273] pci_stop_and_remove_bus_device+0xe/0x20
[ 4093.900275] pci_iov_remove_virtfn+0x187/0x420
[ 4093.900277] ? pci_iov_add_virtfn+0xe10/0xe10
[ 4093.900278] ? pci_get_subsys+0x90/0x90
[ 4093.900280] sriov_disable+0xed/0x3e0
[ 4093.900282] ? bus_find_device+0x12d/0x1a0
[ 4093.900290] i40e_free_vfs+0x754/0x1210 [i40e]
[ 4093.900298] ? i40e_reset_all_vfs+0x880/0x880 [i40e]
[ 4093.900299] ? pci_get_device+0x7c/0x90
[ 4093.900300] ? pci_get_subsys+0x90/0x90
[ 4093.900306] ? pci_vfs_assigned.part.7+0x144/0x210
[ 4093.900309] ? __mutex_lock_slowpath+0x10/0x10
[ 4093.900315] i40e_pci_sriov_configure+0x1fa/0x2e0 [i40e]
[ 4093.900318] sriov_numvfs_store+0x214/0x290
[ 4093.900320] ? sriov_totalvfs_show+0x30/0x30
[ 4093.900321] ? __mutex_lock_slowpath+0x10/0x10
[ 4093.900323] ? __check_object_size+0x15a/0x350
[ 4093.900326] kernfs_fop_write+0x280/0x3f0
[ 4093.900329] vfs_write+0x145/0x440
[ 4093.900330] ksys_write+0xab/0x160
[ 4093.900332] ? __ia32_sys_read+0xb0/0xb0
[ 4093.900334] ? fput_many+0x1a/0x120
[ 4093.900335] ? filp_close+0xf0/0x130
[ 4093.900338] do_syscall_64+0xa0/0x370
[ 4093.900339] ? page_fault+0x8/0x30
[ 4093.900341] entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x65/0xca
[ 4093.900357] RIP: 0033:0x7f16ad4d22c0
[ 4093.900359] Code: 73 01 c3 48 8b 0d d8 cb 2c 00 f7 d8 64 89 01 48 83 c8 ff c3 66 0f 1f 44 00 00 83 3d 89 24 2d 00 00 75 10 b8 01 00 00 00 0f 05 3d 01 f0 ff ff 73 31 c3 48 83 ec 08 e8 fe dd 01 00 48 89 04 24
[ 4093.900360] RSP: 002b:00007ffd6491b7f8 EFLAGS: 00000246 ORIG_RAX: 0000000000000001
[ 4093.900362] RAX: ffffffffffffffda RBX: 0000000000000002 RCX: 00007f16ad4d22c0
[ 4093.900363] RDX: 0000000000000002 RSI: 0000000001a41408 RDI: 0000000000000001
[ 4093.900364] RBP: 0000000001a41408 R08: 00007f16ad7a1780 R09: 00007f16ae1f2700
[ 4093.9003
—truncated—

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How to fix CVE-2023-53556

CVE-2023-53556 is a unknown severity vulnerability affecting the affected product.

Description: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: iavf: Fix use-after-free in free_netdev We do netif_napi_add() for all allocated q_vectors[], but potentially do netif_napi_del() for part of them, then kfree q_vectors and leave invalid pointers at dev->napi_list. Reproducer: [root@host ~]# cat repro.sh #!/bin/bash pf_dbsf=”0000:41:00.0″ vf0_dbsf=”0000:41:02.0″ g_pids=() function do_set_numvf() { echo 2 >/sys/bus/pci/devices/${pf_dbsf}/sriov_numvfs sleep […]

Exploit Difficulty: HARD
⏱️ Time to exploit: > 4 hours
🛠️ Required skills: Advanced security expertise
💰 Public exploits: Rare or not public

How to Fix:

1 Identify affected systems

- Check if you're running the affected product

2 Immediate actions

- Update to the latest patched version
- If patching is not immediately possible: restrict network exposure, apply least-privilege access

3 Verification

- Test the fix in a staging environment first
- Review logs for signs of exploitation
- Monitor for IOCs (Indicators of Compromise)

4 Long-term prevention

- Enable automatic security updates
- Set up vulnerability monitoring
- Review and harden security configurations

Exploit Difficulty Assessment

HARD
⏱️ Time to Exploit: > 4 hours
🛠️ Skills Required: Advanced security expertise
💰 Public Exploits: Rare or not public

Vulnerability Timeline

Oct 04, 2025
Vulnerability Published

CVE details first published to NVD database

Nov 12, 2025
Imported to Database

Added to this CVE tracking system

Detection Rules & IOCs

No specific detection rules generated for this vulnerability type.

No vendor/product data available.