high CVSS 7.8 EPSS <0.1%

CVE-2023-52864·Kernel vulnerability

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: platform/x86: wmi: Fix opening of char device Since commit fa1f68db6ca7 ("drivers: misc: pass miscdevice pointer via file private data"), the miscdevice stores a pointer to itself inside filp->private_data, which means that private_data will not be NULL when wmi_char_open() is called. This might cause memory corruption should wmi_char_open() be unable to find its driver, something which can happen when the associated WMI device is deleted in wmi_free_devices(). Fix the problem by using the miscdevice pointer to retrieve the WMI device data associated with a char device using container_of(). This also avoids wmi_char_open() picking a wrong WMI device bound to a driver with the same name as the original driver.

Severity
high
Software
Kernel
Fixed in
6.6.2
Published

How likely is exploitation

FIRST's Exploit Prediction Scoring System puts the probability of this CVE being exploited in the next 30 days at <0.1% — higher than 1% of all published CVEs. EPSS is an independent forecast of exploitation, not a severity rating: it says nothing about how much damage a successful attack does, which is what a CVSS score measures.

Read the two together. CVE-2023-52864 scores 7.8 on CVSS, so a successful attack would be serious — but at <0.1%, almost nobody is currently attempting it. That is a different situation from a flaw under mass exploitation, and it is usually the difference between patching on your next maintenance window and patching tonight.

Affected versions

From: 6.6

Until: 6.6.2

Fixed in: 6.6.2

How to fix this CVE

Update your Linux kernel to version 6.6.2 or later to resolve a character device opening flaw in the WMI subsystem that could lead to memory corruption. This vulnerability affects systems running kernel versions 6.6 through 6.6.1 where improper pointer handling in wmi_char_open() could cause kernel memory issues when WMI devices are deleted or when multiple drivers share the same name.

sudo dnf update kernel kernel-devel

Defensia detects this vulnerability

How to check if you are affected

  1. Step 1: Check your kernel version by running: uname -r — verify if it falls within 6.6.0 to 6.6.1 range
  2. Step 2: Confirm WMI subsystem is active by checking: grep -i wmi /proc/devices — a non-empty result indicates the vulnerable component is loaded
  3. Step 3: Search system logs for WMI device removal or char device open failures: journalctl -u kernel --grep='wmi\|char device' | head -20
  4. Step 4: After patching, reboot and verify the new kernel version: uname -r — should show 6.6.2 or later

FAQ

What is CVE-2023-52864?

This is a Linux kernel vulnerability in the WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation) platform driver where improper handling of character device file descriptors can trigger memory corruption during device removal or when multiple drivers share identical names.

Is CVE-2023-52864 being actively exploited?

No, this vulnerability is not listed in CISA's KEV catalog and no public exploits are currently available, though it remains a high-severity local privilege escalation risk.

What versions of Kernel are affected by CVE-2023-52864?

Linux kernel versions 6.6.0, 6.6.1, and 6.6.2 (before the fix) are affected; systems running 6.6.2 and later are patched.

How do I check if my server is vulnerable to CVE-2023-52864?

Run uname -r and compare the output — if it shows 6.6.0, 6.6.1, or 6.6.2, your system is vulnerable; also verify WMI is active with: grep wmi /proc/devices

Does Defensia detect CVE-2023-52864?

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-2023-52864 will appear in your dashboard with remediation steps.

Related Kernel CVEs

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CVE-2026-53260CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: tcp: Add preempt_{disable,enable}_nested() in reqsk_queue_hash_req(). syzbot reported a weird reqsk->rsk_refcnt underflow in __inet_csk_reqsk_queue_drop(). The captured reqsk_put() in __inet_csk_reqsk_queue_drop() is called only when it successfully removes reqsk from ehash. Moreover, reqsk_timer_handler() calls another reqsk_put() after that. This indicates that the reqsk was missing both refcnts for ehash and the timer itself. Since all the syzbot reports had PREEMPT_RT enabled, the only possible scenario is that reqsk_queue_hash_req() is preempted after mod_timer() and before refcount_set(), and then the timer triggered after 1s aborts the reqsk due to its listener's close(). Let's wrap mod_timer() and refcount_set() with preempt_disable_nested() and preempt_enable_nested(). Note that inet_ehash_insert() holds the normal spin_lock() (mutex in PREEMPT_RT), so it must be called outside of preempt_disable_nested(), but this is fine. The lookup path just ignores 0 sk_refcnt entries in ehash and tries to create another reqsk, but this will fail at inet_ehash_insert(). [0]: refcount_t: underflow; use-after-free. WARNING: lib/refcount.c:28 at refcount_warn_saturate+0xb2/0x110 lib/refcount.c:28, CPU#0: ktimers/0/16 Modules linked in: CPU: 0 UID: 0 PID: 16 Comm: ktimers/0 Tainted: G L syzkaller #0 PREEMPT_{RT,(full)} Tainted: [L]=SOFTLOCKUP Hardware name: Google Google Compute Engine/Google Compute Engine, BIOS Google 04/18/2026 RIP: 0010:refcount_warn_saturate+0xb2/0x110 lib/refcount.c:28 Code: e4 7d d1 0a 67 48 0f b9 3a eb 4a e8 38 3d 23 fd 48 8d 3d e1 7d d1 0a 67 48 0f b9 3a eb 37 e8 25 3d 23 fd 48 8d 3d de 7d d1 0a <67> 48 0f b9 3a eb 24 e8 12 3d 23 fd 48 8d 3d db 7d d1 0a 67 48 0f RSP: 0000:ffffc90000157948 EFLAGS: 00010246 RAX: ffffffff84a1301b RBX: 0000000000000003 RCX: ffff88801ca98000 RDX: 0000000000000100 RSI: 0000000000000000 RDI: ffffffff8f72ae00 RBP: ffffffff99ae3b01 R08: ffff88801ca98000 R09: 0000000000000005 R10: 0000000000000100 R11: 0000000000000004 R12: ffff8880425ef568 R13: ffff8880425ef4f8 R14: ffff8880425ef578 R15: 0000000000000000 FS: 0000000000000000(0000) GS:ffff888126386000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 CR2: 00007f7b46710e9c CR3: 000000000dbb6000 CR4: 00000000003526f0 Call Trace: <TASK> __refcount_sub_and_test include/linux/refcount.h:400 [inline] __refcount_dec_and_test include/linux/refcount.h:432 [inline] refcount_dec_and_test include/linux/refcount.h:450 [inline] reqsk_put include/net/request_sock.h:136 [inline] __inet_csk_reqsk_queue_drop+0x3ce/0x440 net/ipv4/inet_connection_sock.c:1007 reqsk_timer_handler+0x651/0xdf0 net/ipv4/inet_connection_sock.c:1137 call_timer_fn+0x192/0x5e0 kernel/time/timer.c:1748 expire_timers kernel/time/timer.c:1799 [inline] __run_timers kernel/time/timer.c:2374 [inline] __run_timer_base+0x6a3/0x9f0 kernel/time/timer.c:2386 run_timer_base kernel/time/timer.c:2395 [inline] run_timer_softirq+0x67/0x170 kernel/time/timer.c:2403 handle_softirqs+0x1de/0x6d0 kernel/softirq.c:622 __do_softirq kernel/softirq.c:656 [inline] run_ktimerd+0x69/0x100 kernel/softirq.c:1151 smpboot_thread_fn+0x541/0xa50 kernel/smpboot.c:160 kthread+0x388/0x470 kernel/kthread.c:436 ret_from_fork+0x514/0xb70 arch/x86/kernel/process.c:158 ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30 arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:245 </TASK>
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CVE-2026-53399CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: nfsd: release layout stid on setlease failure nfs4_alloc_stid() publishes the new stid into cl->cl_stateids via idr_alloc_cyclic() under cl_lock before returning to nfsd4_alloc_layout_stateid(). When nfsd4_layout_setlease() then fails, the error path frees the layout stateid directly with kmem_cache_free() without ever calling idr_remove(), leaving the IDR slot pointing at freed slab memory. Any subsequent IDR walker (states_show, client teardown) dereferences the dangling pointer. The correct teardown for an IDR-published stid is nfs4_put_stid(), which removes the IDR slot under cl_lock, dispatches sc_free (nfsd4_free_layout_stateid) to release ls->ls_file via nfsd4_close_layout(), and drops the nfs4_file reference in its tail. A second issue blocks that switch: nfsd4_free_layout_stateid() unconditionally inspects ls->ls_fence_work via delayed_work_pending() under ls_lock, but INIT_DELAYED_WORK(&ls->ls_fence_work, ...) currently runs only after the setlease call. On the setlease-failure path the destructor would touch an uninitialized delayed_work. nfsd4_alloc_layout_stateid() nfs4_alloc_stid() /* idr_alloc_cyclic under cl_lock */ nfsd4_layout_setlease() /* fails */ nfs4_put_stid() nfsd4_free_layout_stateid() delayed_work_pending(&ls->ls_fence_work) /* needs INIT */ nfsd4_close_layout() /* nfsd_file_put(ls->ls_file) */ put_nfs4_file() Fix by hoisting the ls_fenced / ls_fence_delay / INIT_DELAYED_WORK initialization above the nfsd4_layout_setlease() call, and replace the manual nfsd_file_put + put_nfs4_file + kmem_cache_free cleanup with a single nfs4_put_stid(stp).
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References

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