CVE-2023-52902

Local denial of service via leaked maple nodes

Published Aug 21, 2024 · Updated May 11, 2026

Memory leak in Linux kernel 6.1 before 6.1.8 allows local users to exhaust memory via a failed NOMMU memory-mapping operation. The do_mmap error_just_free path abandons preallocated maple-tree nodes instead of releasing them after a mapping failure. The flaw is limited to NOMMU builds and requires local low-privilege access; repeated failures consume kernel memory and can interrupt service.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.21%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Memory leak in Linux kernel 6.1 before 6.1.8 allows local users to exhaust memory via a failed NOMMU memory-mapping operation. The do_mmap error_just_free path abandons preallocated maple-tree nodes instead of releasing them after a mapping failure. The flaw is limited to NOMMU builds and requires local low-privilege access; repeated failures consume kernel memory and can interrupt service.

The record

CVE
CVE-2023-52902
Published
Aug 21, 2024
Updated
May 11, 2026
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
CWE-401, T1499
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Aug 21, 2024CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. May 11, 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?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=6.1
  2. Affected versionversion=8220543df1489ef96c3d4e8b0b3b03c340e3943e <1442d51026c58e7c11dd5f9b19650632a48676d4
  3. Affected versionversion=8220543df1489ef96c3d4e8b0b3b03c340e3943e <7f31cced5724e6d414fe750aa1cd7e7b578ec22f

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=6.1; version=8220543df1489ef96c3d4e8b0b3b03c340e3943e <1442d51026c58e7c11dd5f9b19650632a48676d4; version=8220543df1489ef96c3d4e8b0b3b03c340e3943e <7f31cced5724e6d414fe750aa1cd7e7b578ec22f

Published CVSS scores

5.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-401Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime
T1499Endpoint Denial of Service

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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