CVE-2023-53171
vfio/type1: prevent underflow of locked_vm via exec()
Published Sep 15, 2025
CVSS 3.1 · 5.5 Medium
EPSS < 1%
KEV · Not listed
Description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
vfio/type1: prevent underflow of locked_vm via exec()
When a vfio container is preserved across exec, the task does not change,
but it gets a new mm with locked_vm=0, and loses the count from existing
dma mappings. If the user later unmaps a dma mapping, locked_vm underflows
to a large unsigned value, and a subsequent dma map request fails with
ENOMEM in __account_locked_vm.
To avoid underflow, grab and save the mm at the time a dma is mapped.
Use that mm when adjusting locked_vm, rather than re-acquiring the saved
task's mm, which may have changed. If the saved mm is dead, do nothing.
locked_vm is incremented for existing mappings in a subsequent patch.
vfio/type1: prevent underflow of locked_vm via exec()
When a vfio container is preserved across exec, the task does not change,
but it gets a new mm with locked_vm=0, and loses the count from existing
dma mappings. If the user later unmaps a dma mapping, locked_vm underflows
to a large unsigned value, and a subsequent dma map request fails with
ENOMEM in __account_locked_vm.
To avoid underflow, grab and save the mm at the time a dma is mapped.
Use that mm when adjusting locked_vm, rather than re-acquiring the saved
task's mm, which may have changed. If the saved mm is dead, do nothing.
locked_vm is incremented for existing mappings in a subsequent patch.
Affected Products
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CVE record
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NVD configurations
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Red Hat packages
No data
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OpenCVE enrichment
Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).
| Vendor | Product | Default status | Versions | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | unaffected |
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| Linux | Linux | affected |
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Configuration 1 [-]
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No data.
| Vendor | Product | Versions |
|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux Kernel | — |
Remediation
Tracking
Advisories
| Source | ID | Title |
|---|---|---|
 EUVD |
EUVD-2023-59805 | In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: vfio/type1: prevent underflow of locked_vm via exec() When a vfio container is preserved across exec, the task does not change, but it gets a new mm with locked_vm=0, and loses the count from existing dma mappings. If the user later unmaps a dma mapping, locked_vm underflows to a large unsigned value, and a subsequent dma map request fails with ENOMEM in __account_locked_vm. To avoid underflow, grab and save the mm at the time a dma is mapped. Use that mm when adjusting locked_vm, rather than re-acquiring the saved task's mm, which may have changed. If the saved mm is dead, do nothing. locked_vm is incremented for existing mappings in a subsequent patch. |
Metrics
No CVSS v4.0
Attack Vector Local
Attack Complexity Low
Privileges Required Low
Scope Unchanged
Confidentiality Impact None
Integrity Impact None
Availability Impact High
User Interaction None
No CVSS v3.0
No CVSS v2
This CVE is not in the KEV list.
Exploit prediction score: < 1% (0.160% probability within 30 days)
Exploitation none
Automatable no
Technical Impact partial
References
History
Nov 6, 2026 7:30 PM
Scoring metrics updated
View changes
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Metrics |
ssvc
|
Dec 2, 2025 3:00 AM
Weaknesses updated. Affected versions updated. Scoring metrics updated
View changes
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Weaknesses | NVD-CWE-noinfo | |
| CPEs | cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | |
| Metrics |
cvssV3_1
|
Sep 17, 2025 11:00 AM
First appearance in the feed. Affected vendors updated
View changes
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| First Time appeared |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
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| Vendors & Products |
Linux
Linux linux Kernel |
Sep 15, 2025 2:15 PM
Description updated. Title updated. Added references
View changes
| Type | Values Removed | Values Added |
|---|---|---|
| Description | In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: vfio/type1: prevent underflow of locked_vm via exec() When a vfio container is preserved across exec, the task does not change, but it gets a new mm with locked_vm=0, and loses the count from existing dma mappings. If the user later unmaps a dma mapping, locked_vm underflows to a large unsigned value, and a subsequent dma map request fails with ENOMEM in __account_locked_vm. To avoid underflow, grab and save the mm at the time a dma is mapped. Use that mm when adjusting locked_vm, rather than re-acquiring the saved task's mm, which may have changed. If the saved mm is dead, do nothing. locked_vm is incremented for existing mappings in a subsequent patch. | |
| Title | vfio/type1: prevent underflow of locked_vm via exec() | |
| References |
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Subscriptions
Weaknesses
