CVE-2023-53288

Memory exhaustion via unreleased DRM modes

Published Sep 16, 2025 · Updated Sep 16, 2025

A memory leak in the Linux kernel DRM client allows local users to exhaust memory by repeatedly triggering display mode changes. The drm_client_modeset_probe function overwrites modeset->mode with a new duplicate without first destroying the previously allocated mode. Reachability requires local low-privileged access and an active DRM client; repeated modesetting consumes kernel memory and can interrupt service.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.14%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

A memory leak in the Linux kernel DRM client allows local users to exhaust memory by repeatedly triggering display mode changes. The drm_client_modeset_probe function overwrites modeset->mode with a new duplicate without first destroying the previously allocated mode. Reachability requires local low-privileged access and an active DRM client; repeated modesetting consumes kernel memory and can interrupt service.

The record

CVE
CVE-2023-53288
Published
Sep 16, 2025
Updated
Sep 16, 2025
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
CWE-401, T1499
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Sep 16, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Sep 16, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

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

  1. Affected versionversion=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <1369d0c586ad44f2d18fe2f4cbc5bcb24132fa71
  2. Affected versionversion=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <2329cc7a101af1a844fbf706c0724c0baea38365
  3. Affected versionversion=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <5d580017bdb9b3e930b6009e467e5e1589f8ca8a
  4. Affected versionversion=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <5f2a12f64347f535c6ef55fa7eb36a2874d69b59
  5. Affected versionversion=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <8108a494639e56aea77e7196a1d6ea89792b9d4a
  6. Affected versionversion=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <917bef37cfaca07781c6fbaf6cd9404d27e64e6f

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <1369d0c586ad44f2d18fe2f4cbc5bcb24132fa71; version=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <2329cc7a101af1a844fbf706c0724c0baea38365; version=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <5d580017bdb9b3e930b6009e467e5e1589f8ca8a; version=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <5f2a12f64347f535c6ef55fa7eb36a2874d69b59; version=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <8108a494639e56aea77e7196a1d6ea89792b9d4a; version=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <917bef37cfaca07781c6fbaf6cd9404d27e64e6f

Published CVSS scores

5.5NVDCVSS: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 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 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

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo