# CVE-2023-53852: nvme-core: fix memory leak in dhchap_secret_store

> A memory leak in the Linux kernel NVMe driver allows local attackers to exhaust system memory, causing denial of service.

- **Severity:** Not scored
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 9 Dec 2025
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2023-53852, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-53852, GHSA-6p7c-22m4-r5fq, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-53852

## What is CVE-2023-53852?

CVE-2023-53852 is a memory corruption vulnerability in Linux, published on 9 Dec 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:

nvme-core: fix memory leak in dhchap_secret_store

Free dhchap_secret in nvme_ctrl_dhchap_secret_store() before we return
fix following kmemleack:-

unreferenced object 0xffff8886376ea800 (size 64):
  comm "check", pid 22048, jiffies 4344316705 (age 92.199s)
  hex dump (first 32 bytes):
    44 48 48 43 2d 31 3a 30 30 3a 6e 78 72 35 4b 67  DHHC-1:00:nxr5Kg
    75 58 34 75 6f 41 78 73 4a 61 34 63 2f 68 75 4c  uX4uoAxsJa4c/huL
  backtrace:
    [<0000000030ce5d4b>] __kmalloc+0x4b/0x130
    [<000000009be1cdc1>] nvme_ctrl_dhchap_secret_store+0x8f/0x160 [nvme_core]
    [<00000000ac06c96a>] kernfs_fop_write_iter+0x12b/0x1c0
    [<00000000437e7ced>] vfs_write+0x2ba/0x3c0
    [<00000000f9491baf>] ksys_write+0x5f/0xe0
    [<000000001c46513d>] do_syscall_64+0x3b/0x90
    [<00000000ecf348fe>] entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x72/0xdc
unreferenced object 0xffff8886376eaf00 (size 64):
  comm "check", pid 22048, jiffies 4344316736 (age 92.168s)
  hex dump (first 32 bytes):
    44 48 48 43 2d 31 3a 30 30 3a 6e 78 72 35 4b 67  DHHC-1:00:nxr5Kg
    75 58 34 75 6f 41 78 73 4a 61 34 63 2f 68 75 4c  uX4uoAxsJa4c/huL
  backtrace:
    [<0000000030ce5d4b>] __kmalloc+0x4b/0x130
    [<000000009be1cdc1>] nvme_ctrl_dhchap_secret_store+0x8f/0x160 [nvme_core]
    [<00000000ac06c96a>] kernfs_fop_write_iter+0x12b/0x1c0
    [<00000000437e7ced>] vfs_write+0x2ba/0x3c0
    [<00000000f9491baf>] ksys_write+0x5f/0xe0
    [<000000001c46513d>] do_syscall_64+0x3b/0x90
    [<00000000ecf348fe>] entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe+0x72/0xdc

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-53852?


## How do I fix CVE-2023-53852?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2023-53852 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-53852 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-53852 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-53852 is a memory corruption vulnerability in Linux, published on 9 Dec 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-2023-53852 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Linux. 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-2023-53852/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-53852/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-53852
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-53852
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-53852

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-53852/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.