Review reviewHigh

CVE-2023-54206

Linux

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net/sched: flower: fix filter idr initialization The cited commit moved idr initialization too early in fl_change() which allows concurrent users to access the filter that is still being initialized and is in inconsistent state, which, in turn, can cause NULL pointer dereference [0]. Since there is no obvious way to fix the ordering without reverting the whole cited commit, alternative approach taken to first insert NULL pointer into idr in order to allocate the handle but still cause fl_get() to return NULL and prevent con...

CVSS
7.8
EPSS
0.13%
2.61% percentile
CISA KEV
Not listed
Published
2025.12.30
PRIORITY ASSESSMENT

Review review

The CVSS severity warrants an early asset and exposure review.

Known exploitationNot established by KEV
Exploit probability0.13%
Technical severityCVSS 7.8

Vulnerability overview

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net/sched: flower: fix filter idr initialization The cited commit moved idr initialization too early in fl_change() which allows concurrent users to access the filter that is still being initialized and is in inconsistent state, which, in turn, can cause NULL pointer dereference [0]. Since there is no obvious way to fix the ordering without reverting the whole cited commit, alternative approach taken to first insert NULL pointer into idr in order to allocate the handle but still cause fl_get() to return NULL and prevent con...

Affected product and versions

Product
Linux
Affected versions
>= 08a0063df3aed8d76a4034279117db12dbc1050f < 253a3a324e0ebc2825de76a0f5f17b8383b2023d, >= 08a0063df3aed8d76a4034279117db12dbc1050f < dd4f6bbfa646f258e5bcdfac57a5c413d687f588, >= 6.3
Fixed versions
No verified fixed-version field is available yet

Recommended response sequence

Confirm exposure before applying a vendor-supported change.

Full remediation guide
  1. 1
    Identify

    Confirm that Linux and an affected version are present.

  2. 2
    Prioritize

    Combine exploitation signals with asset exposure and business criticality.

  3. 3
    Remediate

    Follow the vendor advisory or supported update path and preserve rollback options.

  4. 4
    Verify

    Recheck the version, service health, access paths, and relevant logs.

Technical data

CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CWE
Not available
CVE-2023-54206 — Linux | SECUFOCUS NOW