# CVE-2024-43853: cgroup/cpuset: Prevent UAF in proc_cpuset_show()

> A use-after-free vulnerability in the Linux kernel's cpuset subsystem allows local attackers to potentially execute code or escalate privileges via race conditions.

- **Severity:** High 7.0 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/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:** 17 Aug 2024
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-47947, AZL-48060, BELL-CVE-2024-43853, DEBIAN-CVE-2024-43853, GHSA-6xgm-r8j8-r5hq, UBUNTU-CVE-2024-43853

## What is CVE-2024-43853?

CVE-2024-43853 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 17 Aug 2024. 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:

cgroup/cpuset: Prevent UAF in proc_cpuset_show()

An UAF can happen when /proc/cpuset is read as reported in [1].

This can be reproduced by the following methods:
1.add an mdelay(1000) before acquiring the cgroup_lock In the
 cgroup_path_ns function.
2.$cat /proc/<pid>/cpuset   repeatly.
3.$mount -t cgroup -o cpuset cpuset /sys/fs/cgroup/cpuset/
$umount /sys/fs/cgroup/cpuset/   repeatly.

The race that cause this bug can be shown as below:

(umount)		|	(cat /proc/<pid>/cpuset)
css_release		|	proc_cpuset_show
css_release_work_fn	|	css = task_get_css(tsk, cpuset_cgrp_id);
css_free_rwork_fn	|	cgroup_path_ns(css->cgroup, ...);
cgroup_destroy_root	|	mutex_lock(&cgroup_mutex);
rebind_subsystems	|
cgroup_free_root 	|
			|	// cgrp was freed, UAF
			|	cgroup_path_ns_locked(cgrp,..);

When the cpuset is initialized, the root node top_cpuset.css.cgrp
will point to &cgrp_dfl_root.cgrp. In cgroup v1, the mount operation will
allocate cgroup_root, and top_cpuset.css.cgrp will point to the allocated
&cgroup_root.cgrp. When the umount operation is executed,
top_cpuset.css.cgrp will be rebound to &cgrp_dfl_root.cgrp.

The problem is that when rebinding to cgrp_dfl_root, there are cases
where the cgroup_root allocated by setting up the root for cgroup v1
is cached. This could lead to a Use-After-Free (UAF) if it is
subsequently freed. The descendant cgroups of cgroup v1 can only be
freed after the css is released. However, the css of the root will never
be released, yet the cgroup_root should be freed when it is unmounted.
This means that obtaining a reference to the css of the root does
not guarantee that css.cgrp->root will not be freed.

Fix this problem by using rcu_read_lock in proc_cpuset_show().
As cgroup_root is kfree_rcu after commit d23b5c577715
("cgroup: Make operations on the cgroup root_list RCU safe"),
css->cgroup won't be freed during the critical section.
To call cgroup_path_ns_locked, css_set_lock is needed, so it is safe to
replace task_get_css with task_css.

[1] https://syzkaller.appspot.com/bug?extid=9b1ff7be974a403aa4cd

Weakness: CWE-416 (Use After Free)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2024-43853?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2024-43853?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2024-43853 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2024-43853 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-2024-43853 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2024-43853 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 17 Aug 2024. 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-2024-43853 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-2024-43853/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-43853/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2024-43853
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-43853
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2024-43853

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-43853/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.