Security Resilience

CVE-2023-32258

Race Condition in Linux Kernel 5.15 – 5.15.145

Published
24 July 2023
Modified
21 November 2024
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 8.1
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.025 84th percentile
Risk Priority 67 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-2023-32258 is a high-severity Race Condition (CWE-362) vulnerability in Linux Linux Kernel. Its CVSS base score is 8.1 (High).

Operationally, ranked in the top 16% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

CVE-2023-32258 is a race condition vulnerability in the Linux kernel's ksmbd component, an in-kernel SMB server. The flaw occurs during handling of SMB2_LOGOFF and SMB2_CLOSE commands due to missing proper locking on affected objects and is tracked under CWE-362 and CWE-667. Successful exploitation grants an attacker the ability to execute arbitrary code within the kernel context.

The vulnerability can be reached over the network by an unauthenticated attacker without user interaction. Although the CVSS vector indicates high attack complexity, successful exploitation yields full control over kernel execution, confidentiality, integrity, and availability on the target system.

Public advisories from Red Hat, NetApp, and the Zero Day Initiative document the issue and point to corresponding kernel updates that address the locking deficiency in ksmbd.

EPSS for this CVE rose materially from a low baseline to a peak of 0.0737 in January 2025 before receding, indicating that exploitation interest increased well after the original disclosure.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

A flaw was found in the Linux kernel's ksmbd, a high-performance in-kernel SMB server. The specific flaw exists within the processing of SMB2_LOGOFF and SMB2_CLOSE commands. The issue results from the lack of proper locking when performing operations on an…

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object. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the kernel.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2023-32257Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2023-35829Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2023-32254Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2023-32247Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2023-35826Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2023-38427Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2023-35828Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2023-32250Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2023-1838Same product: Linux Linux Kernel
CVE-2023-3390Same product: Linux Linux Kernel

Affected Assets

linux
linux kernel
5.15 — 5.15.145 · 5.16 — 6.1.29 · 6.2 — 6.2.16
netapp
h300s
all versions
netapp
h410s
all versions
netapp
h500s
all versions
netapp
h700s
all versions

Mitigating Controls

Likely Mitigating Controls AI

Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.

addresses: CWE-362

Accurate timestamps from internal clocks enable detection of race conditions by providing reliable event ordering in audit logs.

addresses: CWE-362

Coordination of concurrent security activities reduces the probability that shared resources will be accessed simultaneously without proper synchronization.

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.

blocks

A.8.25 mandates secure SDLC practices (secure coding guidelines, security requirements, checkpoints, testing including code scans/penetration tests, developer training) that reach race conditions in concurrent code, but only as one slice of a broad requirement whose implementation scope and rigour are left to the organisation.

blocks

A.8.26 explicitly lists resilience against malicious attacks including SQL injections and input validation as application security requirements to identify/address; race conditions are a similar class of timing-based concurrency flaw that can be mitigated by requirements for proper synchronization/locking, but this is only one slice of the broad CWE-362 class (most instances arise in low-level shared-memory or TOCTOU scenarios not named here).

blocks

Secure architecture principles require proper synchronization and resource isolation, addressing the root cause of CWE-362.

prevents

Secure coding standards explicitly forbid unsafe concurrent access patterns and mandate atomic operations or locks.

finds

Security testing can detect race conditions, but does not prevent them at design or coding time.

blocks

Change management may catch locking issues introduced by modifications but does not prevent the weakness itself.

Hardening callouts derived

DISA STIG baselines are authored against specific weaknesses. Where this CVE cites a broad weakness class, the mapping is not asserted at that abstraction (owner ruling, 2026-09-25: grade only at Base and below), so no rule is shown here rather than a rule shown against the wrong grain.

  • No fine-grained STIG row for CWE-362, a class-level weakness, and none of its children carries one either.
  • No fine-grained STIG row for CWE-667, a class-level weakness, and none of its children carries one either.

References