CVE-2023-53371 net/mlx5e: fix memory leak in mlx5e_fs_tt_redirect_any_create

Medium 5.5 Published Updated

A memory leak in the Linux kernel's mlx5e driver allows attackers to cause a denial of service by exhausting system memory.

Exploited in the wild
Not known
Login needed
Any signed-in user
Attackable
Local or same network only
Victim action needed
Not needed
Fix
Available

What is CVE-2023-53371?

CVE-2023-53371 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 18 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:

net/mlx5e: fix memory leak in mlx5e_fs_tt_redirect_any_create

The memory pointed to by the fs->any pointer is not freed in the error path of mlx5e_fs_tt_redirect_any_create, which can lead to a memory leak. Fix by freeing the memory in the error path, thereby making the error path identical to mlx5e_fs_tt_redirect_any_destroy().

Weakness: CWE-401

Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-53371?

It affects 1 product.

Products include Linux kernel.

How do I fix CVE-2023-53371?

Apply the vendor's patch.

Upgrade, then put limits on request size, rate and nesting depth so one client cannot exhaust the service. More about Denial of service.

Is CVE-2023-53371 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-53371 in the wild and no public exploit code.

All Linux kernel vulnerabilities

Sources

Also known as BELL-CVE-2023-53371, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-53371, GHSA-5337-pr68-xwqf, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2204-CVE-2023-53371, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-53371.

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