# CVE-2023-53578: net: qrtr: Fix an uninit variable access bug in qrtr_tx_resume()

> An uninitialized variable access in the Linux kernel QRTR subsystem allows attackers to potentially disclose sensitive memory contents via crafted network packets.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **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:** Yes
- **Published:** 4 Oct 2025
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2023-53578, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-53578, GHSA-gvj2-x98p-x2mj, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-53578

## What is CVE-2023-53578?

CVE-2023-53578 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 4 Oct 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: qrtr: Fix an uninit variable access bug in qrtr_tx_resume()

Syzbot reported a bug as following:

=====================================================
BUG: KMSAN: uninit-value in qrtr_tx_resume+0x185/0x1f0 net/qrtr/af_qrtr.c:230
 qrtr_tx_resume+0x185/0x1f0 net/qrtr/af_qrtr.c:230
 qrtr_endpoint_post+0xf85/0x11b0 net/qrtr/af_qrtr.c:519
 qrtr_tun_write_iter+0x270/0x400 net/qrtr/tun.c:108
 call_write_iter include/linux/fs.h:2189 [inline]
 aio_write+0x63a/0x950 fs/aio.c:1600
 io_submit_one+0x1d1c/0x3bf0 fs/aio.c:2019
 __do_sys_io_submit fs/aio.c:2078 [inline]
 __se_sys_io_submit+0x293/0x770 fs/aio.c:2048
 __x64_sys_io_submit+0x92/0xd0 fs/aio.c:2048
 do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:50 [inline]
 do_syscall_64+0x3d/0xb0 arch/x86/entry/common.c:80
 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x63/0xcd

Uninit was created at:
 slab_post_alloc_hook mm/slab.h:766 [inline]
 slab_alloc_node mm/slub.c:3452 [inline]
 __kmem_cache_alloc_node+0x71f/0xce0 mm/slub.c:3491
 __do_kmalloc_node mm/slab_common.c:967 [inline]
 __kmalloc_node_track_caller+0x114/0x3b0 mm/slab_common.c:988
 kmalloc_reserve net/core/skbuff.c:492 [inline]
 __alloc_skb+0x3af/0x8f0 net/core/skbuff.c:565
 __netdev_alloc_skb+0x120/0x7d0 net/core/skbuff.c:630
 qrtr_endpoint_post+0xbd/0x11b0 net/qrtr/af_qrtr.c:446
 qrtr_tun_write_iter+0x270/0x400 net/qrtr/tun.c:108
 call_write_iter include/linux/fs.h:2189 [inline]
 aio_write+0x63a/0x950 fs/aio.c:1600
 io_submit_one+0x1d1c/0x3bf0 fs/aio.c:2019
 __do_sys_io_submit fs/aio.c:2078 [inline]
 __se_sys_io_submit+0x293/0x770 fs/aio.c:2048
 __x64_sys_io_submit+0x92/0xd0 fs/aio.c:2048
 do_syscall_x64 arch/x86/entry/common.c:50 [inline]
 do_syscall_64+0x3d/0xb0 arch/x86/entry/common.c:80
 entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x63/0xcd

It is because that skb->len requires at least sizeof(struct qrtr_ctrl_pkt)
in qrtr_tx_resume(). And skb->len equals to size in qrtr_endpoint_post().
But size is less than sizeof(struct qrtr_ctrl_pkt) when qrtr_cb->type
equals to QRTR_TYPE_RESUME_TX in qrtr_endpoint_post() under the syzbot
scenario. This triggers the uninit variable access bug.

Add size check when qrtr_cb->type equals to QRTR_TYPE_RESUME_TX in
qrtr_endpoint_post() to fix the bug.

Weakness: CWE-908 (Use of Uninitialized Resource)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-53578?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-53578?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2023-53578 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-53578 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Linux kernel

- [CVE-2026-53266](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53266/): Linux Kernel Out-of-Bounds Write (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-6282](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6282/): Linux Kernel Improper Input Validation (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-0185](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-0185/): Linux Kernel Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2013-2094](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2094/): Linux Kernel Privilege Escalation (high 8.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-53362](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-53362/): Linux Kernel Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-53578 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-53578 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 4 Oct 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-53578 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux kernel. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-53578/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-53578/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-53578
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-53578
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-53578

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-53578/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.