CVE-2023-52739 – This CVE describes a double-free vulnerability ... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2023-52739?

CVE-2023-52739 has a CVSS score of 5.5 (MEDIUM). This CVE describes a double-free vulnerability in the Linux kernel's memory management subsystem. A race condition in the __free_pages function can cause page corruption, leading to system instability or crashes. This affects Linux systems running vulnerable kernel versions.

📋 TL;DR

This CVE describes a double-free vulnerability in the Linux kernel's memory management subsystem. A race condition in the __free_pages function can cause page corruption, leading to system instability or crashes. This affects Linux systems running vulnerable kernel versions.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

Linux kernel

Versions: Kernel versions containing commit e320d3012d25 up to the fix commits

Operating Systems: Linux distributions using affected kernel versions

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: The vulnerability is triggered during memory allocation/deallocation operations, particularly under specific timing conditions.

📦 What is this software?

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

Linux Kernel by Linux

The Linux Kernel is the core component of the Linux operating system, serving as the critical interface between computer hardware and software processes. As the heart of millions of servers, cloud infrastructure, embedded systems, Android devices, and IoT deployments worldwide, the Linux Kernel mana...

Learn more about Linux Kernel →

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Kernel panic leading to system crash, potential denial of service, or memory corruption that could be leveraged for privilege escalation.

🟠

Likely Case

System instability, crashes, or performance degradation due to memory corruption.

🟢

If Mitigated

Minimal impact if patched; unpatched systems may experience occasional crashes under specific memory pressure conditions.

🌐 Internet-Facing: LOW - This is a kernel-level vulnerability requiring local access or specific conditions to trigger.

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Local users or processes could potentially trigger the vulnerability, causing system instability.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No

Weaponized: UNKNOWN

Unauthenticated Exploit: ✅ No

Complexity: HIGH - Requires precise timing and memory manipulation to trigger the race condition.

Exploitation requires local access and specific conditions to trigger the race condition.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: Kernel versions with fixes from the provided git commits

Vendor Advisory: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/0a626e27f984dfbe96bd8e4fd08f20a2ede3ea23

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Update to a patched kernel version from your distribution vendor. 2. Reboot the system to load the new kernel.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Memory pressure reduction

linux

Reduce memory allocation pressure to minimize chances of triggering the race condition

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Monitor system logs for memory corruption errors and crashes
Implement strict access controls to limit local user privileges

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check kernel version with 'uname -r' and compare against affected versions from distribution advisories

Check Version:

uname -r

Verify Fix Applied:

Verify kernel version after update matches patched version from vendor advisory

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Kernel messages about 'Bad page state', 'nonzero mapcount', page corruption, or free list pointer corruption

SIEM Query:

Search for kernel logs containing 'Bad page state' OR 'nonzero mapcount' OR 'page corruption'

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2023-52739

CVSS v3 Score: 5.5 (MEDIUM)

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

CWE: CWE-415

Published: May 21, 2024

Last Updated: September 23, 2025

🔗 References

📤 Share & Export

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🔗 Related Vulnerabilities

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