Local privilege escalation via erroneous GEM object release
Published May 2, 2025 · Updated Aug 5, 2026
Use-after-free in the Linux kernel DRM shmem helper allows local users to gain kernel privileges via DRM render-node ioctls. drm_gem_shmem_mmap drops a reference it does not own after a dma_buf_mmap failure, prematurely freeing a shmem GEM object while a handle still references it. Access to a DRM render node and a rejected dma-buf mapping is required; later use of the dangling object enables kernel memory disclosure, corruption, or a kernel panic.
Summary
What happened
Use-after-free in the Linux kernel DRM shmem helper allows local users to gain kernel privileges via DRM render-node ioctls. drm_gem_shmem_mmap drops a reference it does not own after a dma_buf_mmap failure, prematurely freeing a shmem GEM object while a handle still references it. Access to a DRM render node and a rejected dma-buf mapping is required; later use of the dangling object enables kernel memory disclosure, corruption, or a kernel panic.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2023-53084
- Published
- May 2, 2025
- Updated
- Aug 5, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- CWE-416, T1068
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- May 2, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 5, 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?
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- Affected versionversion=4655afcf0e3874af03afff8c8704b52350bdba47
- Affected versionversion=5.10
- Affected versionversion=5.9.5 <5.10
- Affected versionversion=f49a51bfdc8ea717c97ccd4cc98b7e6daaa5553a <5cfb617967b05f8f27e862c97db1fabd8485f4db
- Affected versionversion=f49a51bfdc8ea717c97ccd4cc98b7e6daaa5553a <684c7372bbd6447c2e86a2a84e97a1478604d21f
- Affected versionversion=f49a51bfdc8ea717c97ccd4cc98b7e6daaa5553a <77d26c824aa5a7e0681ef1d5b75fe538d746addc
- Affected versionversion=f49a51bfdc8ea717c97ccd4cc98b7e6daaa5553a <dede8c14a37a7ac458f9add56154a074ed78e7cf
- Affected versionversion=f49a51bfdc8ea717c97ccd4cc98b7e6daaa5553a <ee9adb7a45516cfa536ca92253d7ae59d56db9e4
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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Attacks
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Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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