# CVE-2024-53113: mm: fix NULL pointer dereference in alloc_pages_bulk_noprof

> A race condition during cpuset migration causes a NULL pointer dereference in the Linux kernel memory allocator, leading to a system crash.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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:** 2 Dec 2024
- **Updated:** 11 May 2026
- **Also known as:** AZL-54117, AZL-54188, BELL-CVE-2024-53113, DEBIAN-CVE-2024-53113, GHSA-8x6v-8q4g-xh9f, UBUNTU-CVE-2024-53113

## What is CVE-2024-53113?

CVE-2024-53113 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 2 Dec 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:

mm: fix NULL pointer dereference in alloc_pages_bulk_noprof

We triggered a NULL pointer dereference for ac.preferred_zoneref->zone in
alloc_pages_bulk_noprof() when the task is migrated between cpusets.

When cpuset is enabled, in prepare_alloc_pages(), ac->nodemask may be
&current->mems_allowed.  when first_zones_zonelist() is called to find
preferred_zoneref, the ac->nodemask may be modified concurrently if the
task is migrated between different cpusets.  Assuming we have 2 NUMA Node,
when traversing Node1 in ac->zonelist, the nodemask is 2, and when
traversing Node2 in ac->zonelist, the nodemask is 1.  As a result, the
ac->preferred_zoneref points to NULL zone.

In alloc_pages_bulk_noprof(), for_each_zone_zonelist_nodemask() finds a
allowable zone and calls zonelist_node_idx(ac.preferred_zoneref), leading
to NULL pointer dereference.

__alloc_pages_noprof() fixes this issue by checking NULL pointer in commit
ea57485af8f4 ("mm, page_alloc: fix check for NULL preferred_zone") and
commit df76cee6bbeb ("mm, page_alloc: remove redundant checks from alloc
fastpath").

To fix it, check NULL pointer for preferred_zoneref->zone.

Weakness: CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2024-53113?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Linux kernel.

## How do I fix CVE-2024-53113?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2024-53113 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2024-53113 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-2024-53113 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2024-53113 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Linux kernel, published on 2 Dec 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-2024-53113 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-2024-53113/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-53113/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2024-53113
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-53113
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2024-53113

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-53113/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.