How severe is CVE-2023-53224?

CVE-2023-53224 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.

Is CVE-2023-53224 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (4th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2023-53224?

CVE-2023-53224 affects Linux Linux Kernel. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2023-53224?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.

Does CVE-2023-53224 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?

Yes. CVE-2023-53224 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2023-59860.

When was CVE-2023-53224 published?

CVE-2023-53224 was published on 2025-09-15 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2023-53224

CVE-2023-53224 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux Linux Kernel with a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-401.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 5.5)
EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (4th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
EU (EUVD) id: EUVD-2023-59860
Weakness: CWE-401
Affected product: Linux Linux Kernel
Published: 2025-09-15
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ext4: Fix function prototype mismatch for ext4_feat_ktype With clang's kernel control flow integrity (kCFI, CONFIG_CFI_CLANG), indirect call targets are validated against the expected function pointer prototype to make sure the call target is valid to help mitigate ROP attacks. If they are not identical, there is a failure at run time, which manifests as either a kernel panic or thread getting killed. ext4_feat_ktype was setting the "release" handler to "kfree", which doesn't have a matching function prototype. Add a simple wrapper with the correct prototype. This was found as a result of Clang's new -Wcast-function-type-strict flag, which is more sensitive than the simpler -Wcast-function-type, which only checks for type width mismatches. Note that this code is only reached when ext4 is a loadable module and it is being unloaded: CFI failure at kobject_put+0xbb/0x1b0 (target: kfree+0x0/0x180; expected type: 0x7c4aa698) ... RIP: 0010:kobject_put+0xbb/0x1b0 ... Call Trace: <TASK> ext4_exit_sysfs+0x14/0x60 [ext4] cleanup_module+0x67/0xedb [ext4]

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2023-53224?: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ext4: Fix function prototype mismatch for ext4_feat_ktype With clang's kernel control flow integrity (kCFI, CONFIG_CFI_CLANG), indirect call targets are validated against the expected function pointer prototype to make sure the call target is valid to help mitigate ROP attacks. If they are not identical, there is a failure at run time, which manifests as either a kernel panic or thread getting killed. ext4_feat_ktype was setting the "release" handler to "kfree", which doesn't have a matching function prototype. Add a simple wrapper with the correct prototype. This was found as a result of Clang's new -Wcast-function-type-strict flag, which is more sensitive than the simpler -Wcast-function-type, which only checks for type width mismatches. Note that this code is only reached when ext4 is a loadable module and it is being unloaded: CFI failure at kobject_put+0xbb/0x1b0 (target: kfree+0x0/0x180; expected type: 0x7c4aa698) ... RIP: 0010:kobject_put+0xbb/0x1b0 ... Call Trace: <TASK> ext4_exit_sysfs+0x14/0x60 [ext4] cleanup_module+0x67/0xedb [ext4]
How severe is CVE-2023-53224?: CVE-2023-53224 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.
Is CVE-2023-53224 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (4th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2023-53224?: CVE-2023-53224 affects Linux Linux Kernel. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2023-53224?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
Does CVE-2023-53224 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?: Yes. CVE-2023-53224 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2023-59860.
When was CVE-2023-53224 published?: CVE-2023-53224 was published on 2025-09-15 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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