Kernel: vmwgfx: reference count issue leads to use-after-free in surface handling

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Summary

CVECVE-2023-5633
StatePUBLISHED
Assignerredhat
Source PriorityCVE Program / NVD first with legacy fallback
Published2023-10-23 22:15:09 UTC
Updated2026-11-04 21:17:25 UTC
DescriptionThe reference count changes made as part of the CVE-2023-33951 and CVE-2023-33952 fixes exposed a use-after-free flaw in the way memory objects were handled when they were being used to store a surface. When running inside a VMware guest with 3D acceleration enabled, a local, unprivileged user could potentially use this flaw to escalate their privileges.

Risk And Classification

Primary CVSS: v3.1 7.8 HIGH from [email protected]

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

Problem Types: CWE-911 | CWE-416 | CWE-911 Improper Update of Reference Count

VersionSourceTypeScoreSeverityVector
3.1[email protected]Primary7.8HIGHCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
3.1[email protected]Secondary7.8HIGHCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
3.1CNACVSS7.8HIGHCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS v3.1 Breakdown

Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

NVD Known Affected Configurations (CPE 2.3)

TypeVendorProductVersionUpdateEditionLanguage
Operating System Linux Linux Kernel All All All All

Vendor Declared Affected Products

SourceVendorProductVersionPlatforms
CNA Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 unaffected 0:4.18.0-513.11.1.rt7.313.el8_9 * rpm Not specified
CNA Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 unaffected 0:4.18.0-513.11.1.el8_9 * rpm Not specified
CNA Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.8 Extended Update Support unaffected 0:4.18.0-477.51.1.el8_8 * rpm Not specified
CNA Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 unaffected 0:5.14.0-362.18.1.el9_3 * rpm Not specified
CNA Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 unaffected 0:5.14.0-362.18.1.el9_3 * rpm Not specified
CNA Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.2 Extended Update Support unaffected 0:5.14.0-284.75.1.el9_2 * rpm Not specified
CNA Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.2 Extended Update Support unaffected 0:5.14.0-284.75.1.rt14.360.el9_2 * rpm Not specified
CNA Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 Not specified Not specified
CNA Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 Not specified Not specified
CNA Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 Not specified Not specified
CNA Red Hat Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 Not specified Not specified

References

ReferenceSourceLinkTags
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2024:4823 af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108 access.redhat.com Third Party Advisory
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2024:1404 af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108 access.redhat.com Third Party Advisory
Red Hat af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108 access.redhat.com Third Party Advisory
Red Hat af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108 access.redhat.com Third Party Advisory
Red Hat af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108 access.redhat.com Third Party Advisory
2245663 – (CVE-2023-5633) CVE-2023-5633 kernel: vmwgfx: reference count issue leads to use-after-free in surface handling af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108 bugzilla.redhat.com Issue Tracking, Patch
access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2024:4831 af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108 access.redhat.com Third Party Advisory
cve-details af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108 access.redhat.com Third Party Advisory
CVE Program record CVE.ORG www.cve.org canonical
NVD vulnerability detail NVD nvd.nist.gov canonical, analysis

Vendor Comments And Credit

Discovery Credit

CNA: Red Hat would like to thank Murray McAllister (NCC Group APAC) for reporting this issue. (en)

Additional Advisory Data

SourceTimeEvent
CNA2023-10-23T00:00:00.000ZReported to Red Hat.
CNA2023-09-28T00:00:00.000ZMade public.

Workarounds

CNA: This flaw can be mitigated by turning off 3D acceleration in VMware (if possible) or preventing the affected `vmwgfx` kernel module from being loaded. For instructions on how to blacklist a kernel module, please see https://access.redhat.com/solutions/41278.

Legacy QID Mappings

  • 161404 Oracle Enterprise Linux Security Update for kernel (ELSA-2024-0461)
  • 199938 Ubuntu Security Notification for Linux kernel Vulnerabilities (USN-6503-1)
  • 199982 Ubuntu Security Notification for Linux kernel (GCP) Vulnerability (USN-6537-1)
  • 200182 Ubuntu Security Notification for Linux kernel (OEM) Vulnerabilities (USN-6688-1)
  • 242839 Red Hat Update for kernel (RHSA-2024:0461)
  • 243087 Red Hat Update for kernel (RHSA-2024:1404)
  • 941540 AlmaLinux Security Update for kernel (ALSA-2024:0113)
  • 961107 Rocky Linux Security Update for kernel-rt (RLSA-2024:0134)

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