medium CVSS 5.5

CVE-2023-52702·Kernel vulnerability

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: openvswitch: fix possible memory leak in ovs_meter_cmd_set() old_meter needs to be free after it is detached regardless of whether the new meter is successfully attached.

Severity
medium
Software
Kernel
Fixed in
6.1.13
Published
2024-05-21

Affected versions

From: 5.16

Until: 6.1.13

Fixed in: 6.1.13

How to fix this CVE

Update your Linux kernel to version 6.1.13 or later to patch a memory leak in the Open vSwitch meter configuration function. This vulnerability allows local users to exhaust system memory through improper cleanup of meter objects during configuration changes. Apply the kernel update immediately using your distribution's package manager.

sudo dnf update kernel

Defensia detects this vulnerability

How to check if you are affected

  1. Check your current kernel version: uname -r — if the version is between 5.16 and 6.1.12 inclusive, you are vulnerable
  2. Verify Open vSwitch is installed: dpkg -l | grep openvswitch (Debian/Ubuntu) or rpm -qa | grep openvswitch (RHEL/CentOS)
  3. Monitor system memory usage during ovs-vsctl meter operations: watch -n 1 free -h — look for unexplained memory growth when configuring meters
  4. Confirm the kernel has been updated to 6.1.13 or later: uname -r should show a version number >= 6.1.13

FAQ

What is CVE-2023-52702?

This vulnerability is a memory leak in the Linux kernel's Open vSwitch module that occurs when setting or updating meter configurations. When a new meter is attached, the old meter object fails to be deallocated in certain error conditions, causing kernel memory to leak.

Is CVE-2023-52702 being actively exploited?

No, this vulnerability is not listed on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog and has no public exploit code available. However, local attackers could still leverage it to cause denial-of-service through memory exhaustion.

What versions of Kernel are affected by CVE-2023-52702?

Linux kernel versions 5.16 through 6.1.12 are vulnerable. The fix was released in kernel version 6.1.13.

How do I check if my server is vulnerable to CVE-2023-52702?

Run uname -r to check your kernel version. If it reports a version between 5.16 and 6.1.12, and Open vSwitch is installed (check with dpkg -l | grep openvswitch), your system is vulnerable.

Does Defensia detect CVE-2023-52702?

Yes — Defensia's CVE advisory scanner compares installed package versions against the NVD database. If the Linux kernel is installed on a monitored server, CVE-2023-52702 will appear in your dashboard with remediation steps.

Related Kernel CVEs

CVE-2026-100075CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: RDMA/srpt: Fix srpt_alloc_rw_ctxs() unwind counters When srpt_alloc_rw_ctxs() fails partway through a multi-buffer indirect descriptor, the unwind path destroys RDMA contexts but leaves stale n_rw_ctx and n_rdma values (and a dangling rw_ctxs pointer). Later sq_wr_avail accounting in srpt_queue_response() or srpt_write_pending() can then subtract the wrong number of send queue credits. Reset the counters and clear rw_ctxs after freeing the heap allocation before returning an error.
CVE-2026-64439CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: crypto: krb5 - filter out async aead implementations at alloc krb5_aead_encrypt(), krb5_aead_decrypt() in rfc3961_simplified.c and rfc8009_encrypt(), rfc8009_decrypt() in rfc8009_aes2.c set a NULL completion callback and treat any negative return from crypto_aead_{encrypt,decrypt}() as terminal, falling through to kfree_sensitive(buffer). When the encrypt_name resolves to an async AEAD instance the request returns -EINPROGRESS, the buffer is freed while the backend's worker still holds a pointer, and the worker dereferences the freed slab on completion. KASAN report under UML+SLUB with a synthetic async aead backend bound to krb5->encrypt_name: BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in t5_stub_complete+0x7d/0xc7 The helpers were written synchronously, so filter the async instances out at allocation time instead of plumbing crypto_wait_req() through every call site. Reachable via net/rxrpc/rxgk.c, fs/afs/cm_security.c and net/ceph/crypto.c on systems with an async AEAD provider bound to the krb5 enctype name.
CVE-2026-64066CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfs: Fix netfs_read_to_pagecache() to pause on subreq failure Fix netfs_read_to_pagecache() so that it pauses the generation of new subrequests if an already-issued subrequest fails.
CVE-2026-64383CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: smb: client: fix double-free in SMB2_flush() replay SMB2_flush() keeps its response buffer bookkeeping across replay attempts. If a replayable flush response is received and the retry then fails before cifs_send_recv() stores a replacement response, flush_exit will free the stale response pointer a second time. Reinitialize resp_buftype and rsp_iov at the top of the replay loop so cleanup only acts on response state produced by the current attempt. This fixes a double-free without changing replay handling for successful requests.
CVE-2026-64067CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfs: Fix missing barriers when accessing stream->subrequests locklessly The list of subrequests attached to stream->subrequests is accessed without locks by netfs_collect_read_results() and netfs_collect_write_results(), and then they access subreq->flags without taking a barrier after getting the subreq pointer from the list. Relatedly, the functions that build the list don't use any sort of write barrier when constructing the list to make sure that the NETFS_SREQ_IN_PROGRESS flag is perceived to be set first if no lock is taken. Fix this by: (1) Add a new list_add_tail_release() function that uses a release barrier to set the pointer to the new member of the list. (2) Add a new list_first_entry_or_null_acquire() function that uses an acquire barrier to read the pointer to the first member in a list (or return NULL). (3) Use list_add_tail_release() when adding a subreq to ->subrequests. (4) Use list_first_entry_or_null_acquire() when initially accessing the front of the list (when an item is removed, the pointer to the new front iterm is obtained under the same lock).

References

Track CVEs across your fleet automatically

Defensia scans your Linux servers and tells you exactly which ones are running vulnerable versions — including CVE-2023-52702. Free for 1 server.

Get started free