io_uring: wait interruptibly for request completions on exit
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · High
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 1 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: io_uring: wait interruptibly for request completions on exit WHen the ring exits, cleanup is done and the final cancelation and waiting on completions is done by io_ring_exit_work. That function is invoked by kworker, which doesn't take any signals. Because of that, it doesn't really matter if we wait for completions in TASK_INTERRUPTIBLE or TASK_UNINTERRUPTIBLE state. However, it does matter to the hung task detection checker! Normally we expect cancelations and completions to happen rather quickly. Some test cases, however, will exit the ring and park the owning task stopped (eg via SIGSTOP). If the owning task needs to run task_work to complete requests, then io_ring_exit_work won't make any progress until the task is runnable again. Hence io_ring_exit_work can trigger the hung task detection, which is particularly problematic if panic-on-hung-task is enabled. As the ring exit doesn't take signals to begin with, have it wait interruptibly rather than uninterruptibly. io_uring has a separate stuck-exit warning that triggers independently anyway, so we're not really missing anything by making this switch.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | 5.1 and later | 5.10.188, 5.15.121, 6.1.39, 6.4.4, 6.5 | Patch available | CNA |
- Linux VendorLinux Affected 5.1 and later Fixed in 5.10.188, 5.15.121, 6.1.39, 6.4.4, 6.5 Patch available CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 1
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 5.1 to before 5.10.188; 5.11 to before 5.15.121; 5.16 to before 6.1.39; 6.2 to before 6.4.4 | Vulnerable | Linux |
- cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 5.1 to before 5.10.188; 5.11 to before 5.15.121; 5.16 to before 6.1.39; 6.2 to before 6.4.4 Vulnerable ·Linux
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Linux (Linux) Fixed in 5.10.188, 5.15.121, 6.1.39, 6.4.4, 6.5
Red Hat 1 advisory
- RHSA-2023:6583 Released 2023-11-07 · Red Hat rating Importantkernel security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat CodeReady Linux Builder (v. 9) kernel-tools-libs-devel-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3, libperf-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AppStream (v. 9) kernel-64k-debug-devel-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3, kernel-64k-debug-devel-matched-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3, kernel-64k-devel-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3 +11
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 9) bpftool-7.2.0-362.8.1.el9_3, kernel-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3, kernel-64k-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3 +29
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3, kernel-rt-core-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3, kernel-rt-debug-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3 +9
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Real Time for NFV (v. 9) kernel-rt-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3, kernel-rt-core-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3, kernel-rt-debug-5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3 +11
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
Not affected: 4 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2023-53461
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-w27r-hww7-6vv2
- 2026-11-05 CISA SSVC decision points changed
References
Patch 5
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/28e649dc9947e6525c95e32aa9a8e147925e3f56
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/8e29835366138389bfad3b31ea06960d0a77bf77
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b50d6e06cca7b67a3d73ca660dda27662b76e6ea
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/58e80cb68b057e974768792c34708c6957810486
- https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/4826c59453b3b4677d6bf72814e7ababdea86949
More Linux Kernel vulnerabilities
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- TI-2026-38352 netfilter: bridge: make ebt_snat ARP rewrite writable KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2013-05264 The (1) get_user and (2) put_user API functions in the Linux kernel before 3.5.5 on the… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2022-00125 Integer overflow in kernel KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
- TI-2013-01864 The perf_swevent_init function in kernel/events/core.c in the Linux kernel before 3.8.9… KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.4
- TI-2021-05514 Heap Out-Of-Bounds Write in Netfilter IP6T_SO_SET_REPLACE KEVCVSS 3.1HIGH 8.3
Sources
- CVE-2023-53461 · CVE Program
- CVE-2023-53461 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-w27r-hww7-6vv2 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2023-53461 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences