Cyber Resilience

CVE-2023-3161

Linux Kernel ≤ 6.2

Published
12 June 2023
Modified
11 March 2025
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 5.5
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
EPSS Score 0.0021 11th percentile
Risk Priority 41 floored blend · peak EPSS

CVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.

Summary

CVE-2023-3161 is a medium-severity Incorrect Bitwise Shift of Integer (CWE-1335) vulnerability in Linux Linux Kernel. Its CVSS base score is 5.5 (Medium).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked at the 11th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

A flaw was found in the Framebuffer Console (fbcon) in the Linux Kernel. When providing font->width and font->height greater than 32 to fbcon_set_font, since there are no checks in place, a shift-out-of-bounds occurs leading to undefined behavior and possible denial…

more

of service.

CWE(s)
CWE-1335CWE-682

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.
attack.mitre.org →
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
attack.mitre.org →
T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution Execution
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in client applications to execute code.
attack.mitre.org →
T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services Lateral Movement
Adversaries may exploit remote services to gain unauthorized access to internal systems once inside of a network.
attack.mitre.org →
T1212 Exploitation for Credential Access Credential Access
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to collect credentials.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2023-3269Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2023-39198Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2023-4133Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2023-39192Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2024-0607Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2023-39194Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2023-39189Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2023-39193Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2023-2194Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2023-39191Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora

Affected Assets

linux
linux kernel
6.2 · ≤ 6.2
fedoraproject
fedora
38
redhat
enterprise linux
8.0, 9.0

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

—

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

—

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

—

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V15.2.2

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices directly prevent shift-related coding errors via reviews and analysis tools, but eliminating this single weakness only partially fulfills the broad control intent.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

A.8.29 Security testing in development and acceptance mostly match
finds

Security testing in development can detect shift-related defects before release.

A.8.25 Secure development life cycle partial match
prevents

Secure development life cycle includes practices that can catch or prevent undefined bitwise-shift behavior.

A.8.26 Application security requirements partial match
prevents

Application security requirements can mandate input validation and range checks that avoid invalid shift counts.

A.8.27 Secure system architecture and engineering principles partial match
degrades

Secure system architecture and engineering principles encourage defensive coding that prevents undefined integer operations.

A.8.28 Secure coding partial match
prevents

Secure coding directly addresses the use of safe bitwise-shift operations and bounds checking.

References