// For flags

CVE-2023-52935

mm/khugepaged: fix ->anon_vma race

Severity Score

7.8
*CVSS v3.1

Exploit Likelihood

*EPSS

Affected Versions

*CPE

Public Exploits

0
*Multiple Sources

Exploited in Wild

-
*KEV

Decision

Track*
*SSVC
Descriptions

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mm/khugepaged: fix ->anon_vma race If an ->anon_vma is attached to the VMA, collapse_and_free_pmd() requires
it to be locked. Page table traversal is allowed under any one of the mmap lock, the
anon_vma lock (if the VMA is associated with an anon_vma), and the
mapping lock (if the VMA is associated with a mapping); and so to be
able to remove page tables, we must hold all three of them. retract_page_tables() bails out if an ->anon_vma is attached, but does
this check before holding the mmap lock (as the comment above the check
explains). If we racily merged an existing ->anon_vma (shared with a child
process) from a neighboring VMA, subsequent rmap traversals on pages
belonging to the child will be able to see the page tables that we are
concurrently removing while assuming that nothing else can access them. Repeat the ->anon_vma check once we hold the mmap lock to ensure that
there really is no concurrent page table access. Hitting this bug causes a lockdep warning in collapse_and_free_pmd(),
in the line "lockdep_assert_held_write(&vma->anon_vma->root->rwsem)". It can also lead to use-after-free access.

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: mm/khugepaged: fix ->anon_vma race If an ->anon_vma is attached to the VMA, collapse_and_free_pmd() requires it to be locked. Page table traversal is allowed under any one of the mmap lock, the anon_vma lock (if the VMA is associated with an anon_vma), and the mapping lock (if the VMA is associated with a mapping); and so to be able to remove page tables, we must hold all three of them. retract_page_tables() bails out if an ->anon_vma is attached, but does this check before holding the mmap lock (as the comment above the check explains). If we racily merged an existing ->anon_vma (shared with a child process) from a neighboring VMA, subsequent rmap traversals on pages belonging to the child will be able to see the page tables that we are concurrently removing while assuming that nothing else can access them. Repeat the ->anon_vma check once we hold the mmap lock to ensure that there really is no concurrent page table access. Hitting this bug causes a lockdep warning in collapse_and_free_pmd(), in the line "lockdep_assert_held_write(&vma->anon_vma->root->rwsem)". It can also lead to use-after-free access.

*Credits: N/A
CVSS Scores
Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High
Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High
Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Medium
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete
* Common Vulnerability Scoring System
SSVC
  • Decision:Track*
Exploitation
None
Automatable
No
Tech. Impact
Total
* Organization's Worst-case Scenario
Timeline
  • 2024-08-21 CVE Reserved
  • 2025-03-27 CVE Published
  • 2025-03-28 CVE Updated
  • 2025-03-30 EPSS Updated
  • ---------- Exploited in Wild
  • ---------- KEV Due Date
  • ---------- First Exploit
CWE
  • CWE-416: Use After Free
CAPEC
Affected Vendors, Products, and Versions
Vendor Product Version Other Status
Vendor Product Version Other Status <-- --> Vendor Product Version Other Status
Linux
Search vendor "Linux"
Linux Kernel
Search vendor "Linux" for product "Linux Kernel"
>= 4.8 < 6.1.11
Search vendor "Linux" for product "Linux Kernel" and version " >= 4.8 < 6.1.11"
en
Affected
Linux
Search vendor "Linux"
Linux Kernel
Search vendor "Linux" for product "Linux Kernel"
>= 4.8 < 6.2
Search vendor "Linux" for product "Linux Kernel" and version " >= 4.8 < 6.2"
en
Affected