CVE-2023-53346 kernel/fail_function: fix memory leak with using debugfs_lookup()

What is CVE-2023-53346?

CVE-2023-53346 is a medium-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 17 Sep 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:

kernel/fail_function: fix memory leak with using debugfs_lookup()

When calling debugfs_lookup() the result must have dput() called on it, otherwise the memory will leak over time. To make things simpler, just call debugfs_lookup_and_remove() instead which handles all of the logic at once.

Weakness: CWE-401

Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-53346?

It affects 1 product.

Products include Linux kernel.

How do I fix CVE-2023-53346?

Apply the vendor's patch.

Upgrade to the fixed version. Memory-safe languages, compiler hardening and fuzzing prevent most new cases. More about Memory corruption.

Is CVE-2023-53346 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-53346 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

• CVE-2026-53266 Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write Exploited High 8.8
• CVE-2013-6282 Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation Exploited High 8.8
• CVE-2022-0185 Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow Exploited High 8.4
• CVE-2013-2094 Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation Exploited High 8.4
• CVE-2026-53362 Linux Kernel Unspecified Exploited High 7.8

All Linux kernel vulnerabilities

Sources

• CVE record
• NVD
• OSV
• GitHub advisory
• How this page is made

Also known as BELL-CVE-2023-53346, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-53346, GHSA-7hgq-q722-gw74, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-53346.