CVE-2023-53415
📋 TL;DR
This CVE describes a memory leak vulnerability in the Linux kernel's USB DWC3 driver when using debugfs_lookup() without proper cleanup. The vulnerability allows attackers to gradually exhaust kernel memory resources, potentially leading to system instability or denial of service. It affects Linux systems with the DWC3 USB driver enabled.
💻 Affected Systems
- Linux kernel
📦 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 →⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Sustained exploitation could lead to kernel memory exhaustion, causing system crashes, denial of service, or unpredictable system behavior that might enable further attacks.
Likely Case
Gradual memory leak over time leading to system performance degradation, potential application failures, or eventual system instability requiring reboot.
If Mitigated
Minimal impact with proper monitoring and memory limits in place; system remains functional but may experience performance issues under heavy debugfs usage.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires ability to trigger debugfs operations on DWC3 USB devices; typically requires local access or compromised process
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Kernel versions containing commits: bab872b638130a18fd54d9adfad7db77ed6457be, be308d68785b205e483b3a0c61ba3a82da468f2c, ce234af49d103d95e3fdca59b25e0d0242f41bb4, cf52c320cf74245ce1c12b0bd48f77b87d77fbc9
Vendor Advisory: https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/bab872b638130a18fd54d9adfad7db77ed6457be
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Update Linux kernel to patched version from your distribution vendor. 2. Reboot system to load new kernel. 3. Verify kernel version after reboot.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable debugfs access
allPrevent access to debugfs which is required to trigger the vulnerability
umount /sys/kernel/debug
echo 0 > /proc/sys/kernel/debug_kernel
Restrict debugfs permissions
allLimit access to debugfs to prevent unauthorized users from triggering the vulnerability
chmod 700 /sys/kernel/debug
mount -o remount,noexec,nosuid /sys/kernel/debug
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict access controls to prevent unauthorized users from accessing debugfs
- Monitor system memory usage and implement automated alerts for unusual memory consumption patterns
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check kernel version and verify if DWC3 USB driver is loaded: 'lsmod | grep dwc3' and 'uname -r' to compare against patched versionsCheck Version:
uname -rVerify Fix Applied:
Verify kernel version is updated to include the fix commits: 'uname -r' and check with distribution vendor for specific patched versions📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Kernel OOM (Out of Memory) messages in dmesg or syslog
- Unusual memory consumption patterns in system monitoring
- Repeated debugfs access attempts
Network Indicators:
- No direct network indicators as this is a local vulnerability
SIEM Query:
source="kernel" AND ("Out of memory" OR "oom" OR "memory allocation failure") AND process="dwc3"