Cyber Resilience

CVE-2023-5972

Memory Safety in Linux Kernel 6.2.1 – 6.5.10

Memory Safety
Published
23 November 2023
Modified
21 November 2024
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 7.0
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.0028 20th percentile
Risk Priority 55 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2023-5972 is a high-severity NULL Pointer Dereference (CWE-476) vulnerability in Linux Linux Kernel. Its CVSS base score is 7.0 (High).

Operationally, ranked at the 20th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

A10:2025 Mishandling of Exceptional Conditions

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

A null pointer dereference flaw was found in the nft_inner.c functionality of netfilter in the Linux kernel. This issue could allow a local user to crash the system or escalate their privileges on the system.

CWE(s)
CWE-476

Related Threats

CVEs Like This One

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CVE-2023-39197Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2023-5345Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2024-27017Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2023-1194Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2024-1312Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2024-27013Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2024-27014Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora
CVE-2024-26986Same product: Fedoraproject Fedora

Affected Assets

linux
linux kernel
6.2, 6.2.0, 6.6 · 6.2.1 — 6.5.10
fedoraproject
fedora
39

Mitigating Controls

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 (static analysis, code review, safe coding standards) directly prevent NULL dereference bugs during development.

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
detects

Security testing can detect NULL dereference defects before release.

A.8.25 Secure development life cycle partial match
prevents

Secure SDLC mandates defensive coding practices that can prevent NULL dereferences.

A.8.26 Application security requirements partial match
prevents

Application security requirements can specify input validation and pointer-safety rules.

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

Secure architecture principles encourage defensive design that avoids unsafe pointer use.

A.8.28 Secure coding partial match
prevents

Secure coding standards directly require NULL-pointer checks and safe dereference patterns.

References