CVE-2023-53473 (GCVE-0-2023-53473)

Vulnerability from cvelistv5 – Published: 2025-10-01 11:42 – Updated: 2026-10-15 21:41
VLAI
Title
ext4: improve error handling from ext4_dirhash()
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ext4: improve error handling from ext4_dirhash() The ext4_dirhash() will *almost* never fail, especially when the hash tree feature was first introduced. However, with the addition of support of encrypted, casefolded file names, that function can most certainly fail today. So make sure the callers of ext4_dirhash() properly check for failures, and reflect the errors back up to their callers.
Severity
7.8 (High)
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
SSVC
Exploitation: none Automatable: no Technical Impact: total
CISA Coordinator · CISA-ADP (v2.0.3)
Decision recorded 2026-10-15 21:34 UTC
Assigner
Linux CNA under the mitre root
CNA scorecard D 53/100 over 7033 records in the last 180 days details
References
Impacted products
Vendor Product Version CPE status
Linux Linux Affected: b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7 , < b2531936118deb3f479c4fa1bcd787b74b8faa6a (git)
Affected: b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7 , < f68876aeef96ef8b708ab10b9cb47ce0a5adb424 (git)
Affected: b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7 , < 70d579aefa652a06af97e013e3fbbabbe5a43553 (git)
Affected: b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7 , < c1fae027da61fe8e7eb99f7244297e81bc0f1e43 (git)
Affected: b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7 , < 4b3cb1d108bfc2aebb0d7c8a52261a53cf7f5786 (git)
guessed Create a notification for this product.
Linux Linux Affected: 5.2
Unaffected: 0 , < 5.2 (semver)
Unaffected: 5.15.112 , ≤ 5.15.* (semver)
Unaffected: 6.1.29 , ≤ 6.1.* (semver)
Unaffected: 6.2.16 , ≤ 6.2.* (semver)
Unaffected: 6.3.3 , ≤ 6.3.* (semver)
Unaffected: 6.4 , ≤ * (original_commit_for_fix)
guessed Create a notification for this product.
Show details on NVD website
To clipboard 

{
  "containers": {
    "adp": [
      {
        "metrics": [
          {
            "other": {
              "content": {
                "id": "CVE-2023-53473",
                "options": [
                  {
                    "Exploitation": "none"
                  },
                  {
                    "Automatable": "no"
                  },
                  {
                    "Technical Impact": "total"
                  }
                ],
                "role": "CISA Coordinator",
                "timestamp": "2026-10-15T21:34:36.698376Z",
                "version": "2.0.3"
              },
              "type": "ssvc"
            }
          }
        ],
        "providerMetadata": {
          "dateUpdated": "2026-10-15T21:41:28.341Z",
          "orgId": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0",
          "shortName": "CISA-ADP"
        },
        "title": "CISA ADP Vulnrichment"
      }
    ],
    "cna": {
      "affected": [
        {
          "defaultStatus": "unaffected",
          "product": "Linux",
          "programFiles": [
            "fs/ext4/hash.c",
            "fs/ext4/namei.c"
          ],
          "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
          "vendor": "Linux",
          "versions": [
            {
              "lessThan": "b2531936118deb3f479c4fa1bcd787b74b8faa6a",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
              "versionType": "git"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "f68876aeef96ef8b708ab10b9cb47ce0a5adb424",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
              "versionType": "git"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "70d579aefa652a06af97e013e3fbbabbe5a43553",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
              "versionType": "git"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "c1fae027da61fe8e7eb99f7244297e81bc0f1e43",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
              "versionType": "git"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "4b3cb1d108bfc2aebb0d7c8a52261a53cf7f5786",
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
              "versionType": "git"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "defaultStatus": "affected",
          "product": "Linux",
          "programFiles": [
            "fs/ext4/hash.c",
            "fs/ext4/namei.c"
          ],
          "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
          "vendor": "Linux",
          "versions": [
            {
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "5.2"
            },
            {
              "lessThan": "5.2",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "0",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "5.15.*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "5.15.112",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "6.1.*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "6.1.29",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "6.2.*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "6.2.16",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "6.3.*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "6.3.3",
              "versionType": "semver"
            },
            {
              "lessThanOrEqual": "*",
              "status": "unaffected",
              "version": "6.4",
              "versionType": "original_commit_for_fix"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "cpeApplicability": [
        {
          "nodes": [
            {
              "cpeMatch": [
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "5.15.112",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.2",
                  "vulnerable": true
                },
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "6.1.29",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.2",
                  "vulnerable": true
                },
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "6.2.16",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.2",
                  "vulnerable": true
                },
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "6.3.3",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.2",
                  "vulnerable": true
                },
                {
                  "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                  "versionEndExcluding": "6.4",
                  "versionStartIncluding": "5.2",
                  "vulnerable": true
                }
              ],
              "negate": false,
              "operator": "OR"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "descriptions": [
        {
          "lang": "en",
          "value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\next4: improve error handling from ext4_dirhash()\n\nThe ext4_dirhash() will *almost* never fail, especially when the hash\ntree feature was first introduced.  However, with the addition of\nsupport of encrypted, casefolded file names, that function can most\ncertainly fail today.\n\nSo make sure the callers of ext4_dirhash() properly check for\nfailures, and reflect the errors back up to their callers."
        }
      ],
      "metrics": [
        {
          "cvssV3_1": {
            "baseScore": 7.8,
            "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
            "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H",
            "version": "3.1"
          },
          "scenarios": [
            {
              "lang": "en",
              "value": "AV:L - The vulnerability is triggered entirely through local syscalls (`getdents64()`/`lseek()` on a directory of a mounted ext4 filesystem, or `creat()`/`rename()` driving `do_split`). No network protocol handler is involved.\nAC:L - The syzbot reproducer is fully deterministic \u2014 a superblock with `s_def_hash_version = DX_HASH_SIPHASH` plus a single `getdents64()` makes `ext4fs_dirhash()` fail on every directory entry, with no race or memory-layout condition outside the attacker\u0027s control.\nPR:L - An ordinary unprivileged local user performs the whole attack \u2014 reading the directory and recovering the leaked stack bytes via `telldir()`; the mounted crafted image is obtained through removable-media automount (udisks2 on desktops/kiosks), and the `-ENOMEM` variant needs no crafted image at all on a normal casefolded volume.\nUI:N - No second party needs to act \u2014 the same attacker supplies the medium and issues the syscalls, and on a legitimately mounted casefolded filesystem the allocation-failure path triggers with no user action whatsoever.\nS:U - The uninitialized read, the disclosure, and the metadata corruption all stay within the kernel\u0027s own security authority; no VM, IOMMU, or sandbox boundary is crossed.\nC:H - Uninitialized kernel stack memory is handed straight to userspace as the readdir file position (`hash2pos()` \u2192 `f_pos` \u2192 `telldir`), repeatably and from a fixed stack slot the attacker can pre-seed with earlier syscalls, yielding a general kernel-stack read primitive that leaks pointers and defeats KASLR.\nI:H - Garbage/zero hash values are propagated into on-disk metadata \u2014 `ext4_insert_dentry` stores them in dirents, `make_indexed_dir`/`dx_insert_block` write them into htree nodes, and `dx_make_map`+`do_split` relocate directory entries based on stale hashes \u2014 corrupting the directory index of a mounted filesystem.\nA:H - The resulting index inconsistency drives `EXT4_ERROR_INODE`/`ext4_error`, forcing a remount-read-only on the default `errors=remount-ro` and a full kernel panic under `errors=panic`, while the garbage rbtree hashes can make `ext4_dx_readdir` return inconsistent results or fail to converge."
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "providerMetadata": {
        "dateUpdated": "2026-08-05T09:14:14.651Z",
        "orgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
        "shortName": "Linux"
      },
      "references": [
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b2531936118deb3f479c4fa1bcd787b74b8faa6a"
        },
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f68876aeef96ef8b708ab10b9cb47ce0a5adb424"
        },
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/70d579aefa652a06af97e013e3fbbabbe5a43553"
        },
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c1fae027da61fe8e7eb99f7244297e81bc0f1e43"
        },
        {
          "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4b3cb1d108bfc2aebb0d7c8a52261a53cf7f5786"
        }
      ],
      "title": "ext4: improve error handling from ext4_dirhash()",
      "x_generator": {
        "engine": "bippy-1.2.0"
      }
    }
  },
  "cveMetadata": {
    "assignerOrgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
    "assignerShortName": "Linux",
    "cveId": "CVE-2023-53473",
    "datePublished": "2025-10-01T11:42:42.875Z",
    "dateReserved": "2025-10-01T11:39:39.401Z",
    "dateUpdated": "2026-10-15T21:41:28.341Z",
    "state": "PUBLISHED"
  },
  "dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
  "dataVersion": "5.2",
  "vulnerability-lookup:meta": {
    "epss": {
      "cve": "CVE-2023-53473",
      "date": "2026-10-29",
      "epss": "0.00168",
      "percentile": "0.05993"
    },
    "nvd": {
      "cve": {
        "affected": [
          {
            "affectedData": [
              {
                "defaultStatus": "unaffected",
                "product": "Linux",
                "programFiles": [
                  "fs/ext4/hash.c",
                  "fs/ext4/namei.c"
                ],
                "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
                "vendor": "Linux",
                "versions": [
                  {
                    "lessThan": "b2531936118deb3f479c4fa1bcd787b74b8faa6a",
                    "status": "affected",
                    "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
                    "versionType": "git"
                  },
                  {
                    "lessThan": "f68876aeef96ef8b708ab10b9cb47ce0a5adb424",
                    "status": "affected",
                    "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
                    "versionType": "git"
                  },
                  {
                    "lessThan": "70d579aefa652a06af97e013e3fbbabbe5a43553",
                    "status": "affected",
                    "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
                    "versionType": "git"
                  },
                  {
                    "lessThan": "c1fae027da61fe8e7eb99f7244297e81bc0f1e43",
                    "status": "affected",
                    "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
                    "versionType": "git"
                  },
                  {
                    "lessThan": "4b3cb1d108bfc2aebb0d7c8a52261a53cf7f5786",
                    "status": "affected",
                    "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
                    "versionType": "git"
                  }
                ]
              },
              {
                "defaultStatus": "affected",
                "product": "Linux",
                "programFiles": [
                  "fs/ext4/hash.c",
                  "fs/ext4/namei.c"
                ],
                "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
                "vendor": "Linux",
                "versions": [
                  {
                    "status": "affected",
                    "version": "5.2"
                  },
                  {
                    "lessThan": "5.2",
                    "status": "unaffected",
                    "version": "0",
                    "versionType": "semver"
                  },
                  {
                    "lessThanOrEqual": "5.15.*",
                    "status": "unaffected",
                    "version": "5.15.112",
                    "versionType": "semver"
                  },
                  {
                    "lessThanOrEqual": "6.1.*",
                    "status": "unaffected",
                    "version": "6.1.29",
                    "versionType": "semver"
                  },
                  {
                    "lessThanOrEqual": "6.2.*",
                    "status": "unaffected",
                    "version": "6.2.16",
                    "versionType": "semver"
                  },
                  {
                    "lessThanOrEqual": "6.3.*",
                    "status": "unaffected",
                    "version": "6.3.3",
                    "versionType": "semver"
                  },
                  {
                    "lessThanOrEqual": "*",
                    "status": "unaffected",
                    "version": "6.4",
                    "versionType": "original_commit_for_fix"
                  }
                ]
              }
            ],
            "source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67"
          }
        ],
        "configurations": [
          {
            "nodes": [
              {
                "cpeMatch": [
                  {
                    "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                    "matchCriteriaId": "C7EBD19F-AB70-44FF-B147-C984EAC49F2D",
                    "versionEndExcluding": "5.15.112",
                    "versionStartIncluding": "5.2",
                    "vulnerable": true
                  },
                  {
                    "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                    "matchCriteriaId": "D48F00B5-5471-4D1B-BE47-1DAB8122F35A",
                    "versionEndExcluding": "6.1.29",
                    "versionStartIncluding": "5.16",
                    "vulnerable": true
                  },
                  {
                    "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                    "matchCriteriaId": "F92F7C8E-A977-4255-B1B6-D1908D8B408F",
                    "versionEndExcluding": "6.2.16",
                    "versionStartIncluding": "6.2",
                    "vulnerable": true
                  },
                  {
                    "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                    "matchCriteriaId": "6D96A7FC-D812-4458-AEA8-3FF4023E6B75",
                    "versionEndExcluding": "6.3.3",
                    "versionStartIncluding": "6.3",
                    "vulnerable": true
                  },
                  {
                    "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:6.4:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                    "matchCriteriaId": "38BC6744-7D25-4C02-9966-B224CD071D30",
                    "vulnerable": true
                  }
                ],
                "negate": false,
                "operator": "OR"
              }
            ]
          }
        ],
        "cveTags": [],
        "descriptions": [
          {
            "lang": "en",
            "value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\next4: improve error handling from ext4_dirhash()\n\nThe ext4_dirhash() will *almost* never fail, especially when the hash\ntree feature was first introduced.  However, with the addition of\nsupport of encrypted, casefolded file names, that function can most\ncertainly fail today.\n\nSo make sure the callers of ext4_dirhash() properly check for\nfailures, and reflect the errors back up to their callers."
          }
        ],
        "id": "CVE-2023-53473",
        "lastModified": "2026-10-15T22:17:39.960",
        "metrics": {
          "cvssMetricV31": [
            {
              "cvssData": {
                "attackComplexity": "LOW",
                "attackVector": "LOCAL",
                "availabilityImpact": "HIGH",
                "baseScore": 7.8,
                "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
                "confidentialityImpact": "HIGH",
                "integrityImpact": "HIGH",
                "privilegesRequired": "LOW",
                "scope": "UNCHANGED",
                "userInteraction": "NONE",
                "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H",
                "version": "3.1"
              },
              "exploitabilityScore": 1.8,
              "impactScore": 5.9,
              "source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
              "type": "Secondary"
            },
            {
              "cvssData": {
                "attackComplexity": "LOW",
                "attackVector": "LOCAL",
                "availabilityImpact": "HIGH",
                "baseScore": 7.8,
                "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
                "confidentialityImpact": "HIGH",
                "integrityImpact": "HIGH",
                "privilegesRequired": "LOW",
                "scope": "UNCHANGED",
                "userInteraction": "NONE",
                "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H",
                "version": "3.1"
              },
              "exploitabilityScore": 1.8,
              "impactScore": 5.9,
              "source": "nvd@nist.gov",
              "type": "Primary"
            }
          ],
          "ssvcV203": [
            {
              "source": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0",
              "ssvcData": {
                "id": "CVE-2023-53473",
                "options": [
                  {
                    "exploitation": "none"
                  },
                  {
                    "automatable": "no"
                  },
                  {
                    "technicalImpact": "total"
                  }
                ],
                "role": "CISA Coordinator",
                "timestamp": "2026-10-15T21:34:36.698376Z",
                "version": "2.0.3"
              }
            }
          ]
        },
        "published": "2025-10-01T12:15:49.557",
        "references": [
          {
            "source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
            "tags": [
              "Patch"
            ],
            "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4b3cb1d108bfc2aebb0d7c8a52261a53cf7f5786"
          },
          {
            "source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
            "tags": [
              "Patch"
            ],
            "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/70d579aefa652a06af97e013e3fbbabbe5a43553"
          },
          {
            "source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
            "tags": [
              "Patch"
            ],
            "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b2531936118deb3f479c4fa1bcd787b74b8faa6a"
          },
          {
            "source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
            "tags": [
              "Patch"
            ],
            "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c1fae027da61fe8e7eb99f7244297e81bc0f1e43"
          },
          {
            "source": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
            "tags": [
              "Patch"
            ],
            "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f68876aeef96ef8b708ab10b9cb47ce0a5adb424"
          }
        ],
        "sourceIdentifier": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
        "vulnStatus": "Modified",
        "weaknesses": [
          {
            "description": [
              {
                "lang": "en",
                "value": "NVD-CWE-noinfo"
              }
            ],
            "source": "nvd@nist.gov",
            "type": "Primary"
          }
        ]
      }
    },
    "redhat_vex": {
      "aggregate_severity": "Moderate",
      "current_release_date": "2026-10-30T02:50:36+00:00",
      "cve": "CVE-2023-53473",
      "id": "CVE-2023-53473",
      "initial_release_date": "2023-01-01T00:00:00+00:00",
      "product_status:fixed": "279",
      "product_status:known_affected": "112",
      "product_status:known_not_affected": "77",
      "source": "Red Hat CSAF VEX",
      "status": "final",
      "title": "kernel: ext4: improve error handling from ext4_dirhash()",
      "url": "https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2023/cve-2023-53473.json",
      "version": "3"
    },
    "suse_vex": {
      "aggregate_severity": "moderate",
      "current_release_date": "2026-10-16T13:23:35Z",
      "cve": "CVE-2023-53473",
      "id": "CVE-2023-53473",
      "initial_release_date": "2025-10-01T23:30:35Z",
      "product_status:known_affected": "413",
      "product_status:known_not_affected": "323",
      "product_status:recommended": "235",
      "source": "SUSE CSAF VEX",
      "status": "interim",
      "title": "SUSE CVE CVE-2023-53473",
      "url": "https://ftp.suse.com/pub/projects/security/csaf-vex/2025/cve-2023-53473.json",
      "version": "23"
    },
    "vulnrichment": {
      "containers": {
        "adp": [
          {
            "metrics": [
              {
                "other": {
                  "content": {
                    "id": "CVE-2023-53473",
                    "options": [
                      {
                        "Exploitation": "none"
                      },
                      {
                        "Automatable": "no"
                      },
                      {
                        "Technical Impact": "total"
                      }
                    ],
                    "role": "CISA Coordinator",
                    "timestamp": "2026-10-15T21:34:36.698376Z",
                    "version": "2.0.3"
                  },
                  "type": "ssvc"
                }
              }
            ],
            "providerMetadata": {
              "dateUpdated": "2026-10-15T21:34:37.623Z",
              "orgId": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0",
              "shortName": "CISA-ADP"
            },
            "title": "CISA ADP Vulnrichment"
          }
        ],
        "cna": {
          "affected": [
            {
              "defaultStatus": "unaffected",
              "product": "Linux",
              "programFiles": [
                "fs/ext4/hash.c",
                "fs/ext4/namei.c"
              ],
              "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
              "vendor": "Linux",
              "versions": [
                {
                  "lessThan": "b2531936118deb3f479c4fa1bcd787b74b8faa6a",
                  "status": "affected",
                  "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
                  "versionType": "git"
                },
                {
                  "lessThan": "f68876aeef96ef8b708ab10b9cb47ce0a5adb424",
                  "status": "affected",
                  "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
                  "versionType": "git"
                },
                {
                  "lessThan": "70d579aefa652a06af97e013e3fbbabbe5a43553",
                  "status": "affected",
                  "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
                  "versionType": "git"
                },
                {
                  "lessThan": "c1fae027da61fe8e7eb99f7244297e81bc0f1e43",
                  "status": "affected",
                  "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
                  "versionType": "git"
                },
                {
                  "lessThan": "4b3cb1d108bfc2aebb0d7c8a52261a53cf7f5786",
                  "status": "affected",
                  "version": "b886ee3e778ec2ad43e276fd378ab492cf6819b7",
                  "versionType": "git"
                }
              ]
            },
            {
              "defaultStatus": "affected",
              "product": "Linux",
              "programFiles": [
                "fs/ext4/hash.c",
                "fs/ext4/namei.c"
              ],
              "repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
              "vendor": "Linux",
              "versions": [
                {
                  "status": "affected",
                  "version": "5.2"
                },
                {
                  "lessThan": "5.2",
                  "status": "unaffected",
                  "version": "0",
                  "versionType": "semver"
                },
                {
                  "lessThanOrEqual": "5.15.*",
                  "status": "unaffected",
                  "version": "5.15.112",
                  "versionType": "semver"
                },
                {
                  "lessThanOrEqual": "6.1.*",
                  "status": "unaffected",
                  "version": "6.1.29",
                  "versionType": "semver"
                },
                {
                  "lessThanOrEqual": "6.2.*",
                  "status": "unaffected",
                  "version": "6.2.16",
                  "versionType": "semver"
                },
                {
                  "lessThanOrEqual": "6.3.*",
                  "status": "unaffected",
                  "version": "6.3.3",
                  "versionType": "semver"
                },
                {
                  "lessThanOrEqual": "*",
                  "status": "unaffected",
                  "version": "6.4",
                  "versionType": "original_commit_for_fix"
                }
              ]
            }
          ],
          "cpeApplicability": [
            {
              "nodes": [
                {
                  "cpeMatch": [
                    {
                      "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                      "versionEndExcluding": "5.15.112",
                      "versionStartIncluding": "5.2",
                      "vulnerable": true
                    },
                    {
                      "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                      "versionEndExcluding": "6.1.29",
                      "versionStartIncluding": "5.2",
                      "vulnerable": true
                    },
                    {
                      "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                      "versionEndExcluding": "6.2.16",
                      "versionStartIncluding": "5.2",
                      "vulnerable": true
                    },
                    {
                      "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                      "versionEndExcluding": "6.3.3",
                      "versionStartIncluding": "5.2",
                      "vulnerable": true
                    },
                    {
                      "criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                      "versionEndExcluding": "6.4",
                      "versionStartIncluding": "5.2",
                      "vulnerable": true
                    }
                  ],
                  "negate": false,
                  "operator": "OR"
                }
              ]
            }
          ],
          "descriptions": [
            {
              "lang": "en",
              "value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\next4: improve error handling from ext4_dirhash()\n\nThe ext4_dirhash() will *almost* never fail, especially when the hash\ntree feature was first introduced.  However, with the addition of\nsupport of encrypted, casefolded file names, that function can most\ncertainly fail today.\n\nSo make sure the callers of ext4_dirhash() properly check for\nfailures, and reflect the errors back up to their callers."
            }
          ],
          "metrics": [
            {
              "cvssV3_1": {
                "baseScore": 7.8,
                "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
                "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H",
                "version": "3.1"
              },
              "scenarios": [
                {
                  "lang": "en",
                  "value": "AV:L - The vulnerability is triggered entirely through local syscalls (`getdents64()`/`lseek()` on a directory of a mounted ext4 filesystem, or `creat()`/`rename()` driving `do_split`). No network protocol handler is involved.\nAC:L - The syzbot reproducer is fully deterministic \u2014 a superblock with `s_def_hash_version = DX_HASH_SIPHASH` plus a single `getdents64()` makes `ext4fs_dirhash()` fail on every directory entry, with no race or memory-layout condition outside the attacker\u0027s control.\nPR:L - An ordinary unprivileged local user performs the whole attack \u2014 reading the directory and recovering the leaked stack bytes via `telldir()`; the mounted crafted image is obtained through removable-media automount (udisks2 on desktops/kiosks), and the `-ENOMEM` variant needs no crafted image at all on a normal casefolded volume.\nUI:N - No second party needs to act \u2014 the same attacker supplies the medium and issues the syscalls, and on a legitimately mounted casefolded filesystem the allocation-failure path triggers with no user action whatsoever.\nS:U - The uninitialized read, the disclosure, and the metadata corruption all stay within the kernel\u0027s own security authority; no VM, IOMMU, or sandbox boundary is crossed.\nC:H - Uninitialized kernel stack memory is handed straight to userspace as the readdir file position (`hash2pos()` \u2192 `f_pos` \u2192 `telldir`), repeatably and from a fixed stack slot the attacker can pre-seed with earlier syscalls, yielding a general kernel-stack read primitive that leaks pointers and defeats KASLR.\nI:H - Garbage/zero hash values are propagated into on-disk metadata \u2014 `ext4_insert_dentry` stores them in dirents, `make_indexed_dir`/`dx_insert_block` write them into htree nodes, and `dx_make_map`+`do_split` relocate directory entries based on stale hashes \u2014 corrupting the directory index of a mounted filesystem.\nA:H - The resulting index inconsistency drives `EXT4_ERROR_INODE`/`ext4_error`, forcing a remount-read-only on the default `errors=remount-ro` and a full kernel panic under `errors=panic`, while the garbage rbtree hashes can make `ext4_dx_readdir` return inconsistent results or fail to converge."
                }
              ]
            }
          ],
          "providerMetadata": {
            "dateUpdated": "2026-08-05T09:14:14.651Z",
            "orgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
            "shortName": "Linux"
          },
          "references": [
            {
              "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b2531936118deb3f479c4fa1bcd787b74b8faa6a"
            },
            {
              "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f68876aeef96ef8b708ab10b9cb47ce0a5adb424"
            },
            {
              "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/70d579aefa652a06af97e013e3fbbabbe5a43553"
            },
            {
              "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c1fae027da61fe8e7eb99f7244297e81bc0f1e43"
            },
            {
              "url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4b3cb1d108bfc2aebb0d7c8a52261a53cf7f5786"
            }
          ],
          "title": "ext4: improve error handling from ext4_dirhash()",
          "x_generator": {
            "engine": "bippy-1.2.0"
          }
        }
      },
      "cveMetadata": {
        "assignerOrgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
        "assignerShortName": "Linux",
        "cveId": "CVE-2023-53473",
        "datePublished": "2025-10-01T11:42:42.875Z",
        "dateReserved": "2025-10-01T11:39:39.401Z",
        "dateUpdated": "2026-10-15T21:41:28.341Z",
        "state": "PUBLISHED"
      },
      "dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
      "dataVersion": "5.2"
    }
  }
}



Log in or create an account to share your comment.




Tags
Taxonomy of the tags.




Drag nodes to arrange them. Double-click a related vulnerability to open it, or a source to visit its link. The Physics button on the left tunes the layout and the simulation; the legend at the bottom left hides or shows nodes by kind and by sighting type.

Forecast uses a logistic model when the trend is rising, or an exponential decay model when the trend is falling. Fitted via linearized least squares.

Sightings

Author Source Type Date Other

Nomenclature

  • Seen: The vulnerability was mentioned, discussed, or observed by the user.
  • Confirmed: The vulnerability has been validated from an analyst's perspective.
  • Published Proof of Concept: A public proof of concept is available for this vulnerability.
  • Exploited: The vulnerability was observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Patched: The vulnerability was observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Not exploited: The vulnerability was not observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
  • Not confirmed: The user expressed doubt about the validity of the vulnerability.
  • Not patched: The vulnerability was not observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
Vulnerability timeline

Sightings and recorded dates, grouped by day · UTC

JSON
How durations are calculated

Following the VTEM framework (Black Hat USA 2015), time to patch starts when the vendor or a coordinator was informed, total time to patch at discovery, and disclosure to patch at public disclosure; vendor response time runs from the report to its acknowledgement. Time to exploit and time unpatched start at the earliest discovery or report, falling back to public disclosure. Unpatched time ends at the first recorded patch, or the calculation time when no patch is recorded. Exploitation to patch shows the interval between those two events; a published proof of concept is a public exploit, not exploitation.

Each result shows its source dates. A negative interval means the end event came first; when date-only inputs leave the order open, the result says so. Date-only inputs are approximate. The earliest evidence wins: KEV report dates and sightings are labelled as such. Records describing another vulnerability are listed but never calculated from, and a PoC alone does not establish exploitation. Missing patch evidence does not prove that no patch exists. Filters below change the event list only.

Loading timeline…




    Related by attack behaviour

    Vulnerabilities whose description is nearest to this one in the vector space of the CIRCL/vulnerability-attack-technique-biencoder model. This is a similarity search over the bi-encoder space (plain cosine), not a classification, and it has no measured accuracy.