CVE-2023-54170

Kernel crash via duplicate DNS key insertion

Published Dec 30, 2025 · Updated Dec 30, 2025

Race condition in the Linux kernel allows local users to crash the system by provoking concurrent equivalent DNS resolver queries. During request_key_and_link, exact assoc_array comparison and DNS resolver matching disagree, allowing equivalent names to be linked as duplicate index keys. The race requires overlapping in-kernel lookups such as CIFS hostname resolution, and the resulting BUG_ON interrupts the entire host.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.20%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Race condition in the Linux kernel allows local users to crash the system by provoking concurrent equivalent DNS resolver queries. During request_key_and_link, exact assoc_array comparison and DNS resolver matching disagree, allowing equivalent names to be linked as duplicate index keys. The race requires overlapping in-kernel lookups such as CIFS hostname resolution, and the resulting BUG_ON interrupts the entire host.

The record

CVE
CVE-2023-54170
Published
Dec 30, 2025
Updated
Dec 30, 2025
Vendor
The Linux Kernel Organization
Product
Linux
Classifications
T1499
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Dec 30, 2025CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Dec 30, 2025Record 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=5.3
  2. Affected versionversion=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <00edfa6d4fe022942e2f2e6f3294ff13ef78b15c
  3. Affected versionversion=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <0a6b0ca58685be34979236f83f2b322635b80b32
  4. Affected versionversion=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <65bd66a794bfa059375ec834885bb610d75c0182
  5. Affected versionversion=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <9aecfebea24fe6071ace5cc9fd6d690b87276bbb
  6. Affected versionversion=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <d55901522f96082a43b9842d34867363c0cdbac5
  7. Affected versionversion=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <e091bb55af9a930801f83df78195a908a76e1479

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

The Linux Kernel Organization · Linuxversion=5.3; version=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <00edfa6d4fe022942e2f2e6f3294ff13ef78b15c; version=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <0a6b0ca58685be34979236f83f2b322635b80b32; version=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <65bd66a794bfa059375ec834885bb610d75c0182; version=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <9aecfebea24fe6071ace5cc9fd6d690b87276bbb; version=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <d55901522f96082a43b9842d34867363c0cdbac5; version=df593ee23e05cdda16c8c995e5818779431bb29f <e091bb55af9a930801f83df78195a908a76e1479

Published CVSS scores

5.5SUSECVSS: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.

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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

T1499Endpoint Denial of Service

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

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Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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