CVE-2023-5088

Nested-guest disk access via reset-state DMA race

Published Nov 3, 2023 · Updated Feb 25, 2026

Incorrect synchronization in QEMU on affected Red Hat Enterprise Linux systems allows guest OS users to read or write LBA 0. ide_bus_reset resets IDEState before canceling pending asynchronous DMA, so ide_dma_cb can use the reset sector value and redirect an operation to sector zero. Exploitation requires a nested L2 guest with its virtual disk stored on an L1 virtual disk; a write can corrupt boot data and enable control of L1 after reboot.

CVSS severity6.4
Medium
EPSS probability0.23%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Incorrect synchronization in QEMU on affected Red Hat Enterprise Linux systems allows guest OS users to read or write LBA 0. ide_bus_reset resets IDEState before canceling pending asynchronous DMA, so ide_dma_cb can use the reset sector value and redirect an operation to sector zero. Exploitation requires a nested L2 guest with its virtual disk stored on an L1 virtual disk; a write can corrupt boot data and enable control of L1 after reboot.

The record

CVE
CVE-2023-5088
Published
Nov 3, 2023
Updated
Feb 25, 2026
Vendor
Red Hat
Product
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
Classifications
CWE-662, CWE-821, T1565.001
Attack vector
local
Privileges
admin

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Nov 3, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Feb 25, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected versions are unavailable in this record. Check the vendor advisory for version and patch details.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesadmin

What is affected?

Red Hat · Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8Affected versions are unavailable in this record.
Red Hat · Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 Advanced VirtualizationAffected versions are unavailable in this record.
Red Hat · Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9Affected versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

6.4Red HatCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
7.0NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 9, 2026Sep 15, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 15, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesadmin
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-662Improper Synchronization
CWE-821Incorrect Synchronization
T1565.001Stored Data Manipulation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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