# CVE-2023-54324: dm: fix a race condition in retrieve_deps

> A race condition in the Linux kernel device-mapper multipath target allows local attackers to trigger memory corruption or use-after-free, potentially leading to privilege escalation.

- **Severity:** Not scored
- **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:** 30 Dec 2025
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** BELL-CVE-2023-54324, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-54324, GHSA-jp9m-rpm6-97j7, ROOT-OS-DEBIAN-11-CVE-2023-54324, ROOT-OS-UBUNTU-2204-CVE-2023-54324, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-54324

## What is CVE-2023-54324?

CVE-2023-54324 is a vulnerability in Linux, published on 30 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:

dm: fix a race condition in retrieve_deps

There's a race condition in the multipath target when retrieve_deps
races with multipath_message calling dm_get_device and dm_put_device.
retrieve_deps walks the list of open devices without holding any lock
but multipath may add or remove devices to the list while it is
running. The end result may be memory corruption or use-after-free
memory access.

See this description of a UAF with multipath_message():
https://listman.redhat.com/archives/dm-devel/2022-October/052373.html

Fix this bug by introducing a new rw semaphore "devices_lock". We grab
devices_lock for read in retrieve_deps and we grab it for write in
dm_get_device and dm_put_device.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-54324?


## How do I fix CVE-2023-54324?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2023-54324 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-54324 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-54324 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-54324 is a vulnerability in Linux, published on 30 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-2023-54324 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-2023-54324/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-54324/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-54324
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-54324
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-54324

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-54324/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.