🛡️ CVE-2023-5178 on Ubuntu — linux
Description
A use-after-free vulnerability was found in drivers/nvme/target/tcp.c in nvmet_tcp_free_crypto` due to a logical bug in the NVMe/TCP subsystem in the Linux kernel. This issue may allow a malicious user to cause a use-after-free and double-free problem, which may permit remote code execution or lead to local privilege escalation.
Distribution advisory
This page covers CVE-2023-5178 as tracked by Ubuntu, for the package linux. The fix is available in version 5.15.0-91.101; earlier versions remain affected.
How this vulnerability can be exploited
This issue can be reached over the network, attack complexity is low, an attacker needs low-level privileges on the target. No user interaction is required. The scope is unchanged, so the impact stays within the vulnerable component. Rated impact: confidentiality high, integrity high, availability high.
CVSS metrics in full
The score comes from this vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
- Attack vector: Network — reachable from anywhere that can route to the service.
- Attack complexity: Low — the attack works reliably, with no preparation.
- Privileges required: Low — an ordinary user account is enough.
- User interaction: None — nobody has to be tricked into anything.
- Scope: Unchanged — the damage stays inside the vulnerable component.
- Confidentiality impact: High — total loss, or loss the attacker controls.
- Integrity impact: High — total loss, or loss the attacker controls.
- Availability impact: High — total loss, or loss the attacker controls.
Weakness class
UBUNTU-CVE-2023-5178 is classified as CWE-416: Use After Free. Memory is used after being released, so its contents may already belong to something else.
Affected software
UBUNTU-CVE-2023-5178 is recorded against 107 packages.
- linux (fixed in 5.15.0-91.101)
- linux-allwinner-5.19
- linux-aws (fixed in 5.15.0-1051.56)
- linux-aws-5.0
- linux-aws-5.11
- linux-aws-5.13
- linux-aws-5.15 (fixed in 5.15.0-1051.56~20.04.1)
- linux-aws-5.19
- linux-aws-5.3
- linux-aws-5.4 (fixed in 5.4.0-1116.126~18.04.1)
- linux-aws-5.8
- linux-aws-6.2 (fixed in 6.2.0-1017.17~22.04.1)
- linux-aws-6.5
- linux-aws-fips
- linux-azure (fixed in 5.15.0-1053.61)
- linux-azure-5.11
- linux-azure-5.13
- linux-azure-5.15 (fixed in 5.15.0-1053.61~20.04.1)
- linux-azure-5.19
- linux-azure-5.3
- linux-azure-5.4 (fixed in 5.4.0-1121.128~18.04.1)
- linux-azure-5.8
- linux-azure-6.2 (fixed in 6.2.0-1018.18~22.04.1)
- linux-azure-6.5
Show the remaining 83 packages
- linux-azure-edge
- linux-azure-fde
- linux-azure-fde-5.19
- linux-azure-fde-6.2 (fixed in 6.2.0-1018.18~22.04.1.1)
- linux-azure-fde-6.8
- linux-azure-fips
- linux-bluefield
- linux-fips
- linux-gcp (fixed in 5.15.0-1048.56)
- linux-gcp-5.11
- linux-gcp-5.13
- linux-gcp-5.15 (fixed in 5.15.0-1048.56~20.04.1)
- linux-gcp-5.19
- linux-gcp-5.3
- linux-gcp-5.4 (fixed in 5.4.0-1120.129~18.04.1)
- linux-gcp-5.8
- linux-gcp-6.2 (fixed in 6.2.0-1021.23~22.04.1)
- linux-gcp-fips
- linux-gke (fixed in 5.15.0-1048.53)
- linux-gke-4.15
- linux-gke-5.15
- linux-gke-5.4
- linux-gkeop (fixed in 5.15.0-1034.40)
- linux-gkeop-5.15 (fixed in 5.15.0-1034.40~20.04.1)
- linux-gkeop-5.4
- linux-hwe
- linux-hwe-5.11
- linux-hwe-5.13
- linux-hwe-5.15 (fixed in 5.15.0-91.101~20.04.1)
- linux-hwe-5.19
- linux-hwe-5.4 (fixed in 5.4.0-169.187~18.04.1)
- linux-hwe-5.8
- linux-hwe-6.2 (fixed in 6.2.0-39.40~22.04.1)
- linux-hwe-edge
- linux-ibm (fixed in 5.15.0-1044.47)
- linux-ibm-5.15 (fixed in 5.15.0-1044.47~20.04.1)
- linux-ibm-5.4 (fixed in 5.4.0-1063.68~18.04.1)
- linux-intel-5.13
- linux-intel-iot-realtime (fixed in 5.15.0-1044.46)
- linux-intel-iotg (fixed in 5.15.0-1046.52)
- linux-intel-iotg-5.15 (fixed in 5.15.0-1046.52~20.04.1)
- linux-iot (fixed in 5.4.0-1028.29)
- linux-kvm (fixed in 5.15.0-1048.53)
- linux-lowlatency (fixed in 5.15.0-91.101)
- linux-lowlatency-hwe-5.15 (fixed in 5.15.0-91.101~20.04.1)
- linux-lowlatency-hwe-5.19
- linux-lowlatency-hwe-6.2 (fixed in 6.2.0-1018.18~22.04.1)
- linux-nvidia (fixed in 5.15.0-1042.42)
- linux-nvidia-6.2 (fixed in 6.2.0-1013.13)
- linux-nvidia-6.5 (fixed in 6.5.0-1007.7)
- linux-nvidia-tegra (fixed in 5.15.0-1020.20)
- linux-nvidia-tegra-5.15 (fixed in 5.15.0-1020.20~20.04.1)
- linux-nvidia-tegra-igx (fixed in 5.15.0-1007.7)
- linux-oem
- linux-oem-5.10
- linux-oem-5.13
- linux-oem-5.14
- linux-oem-5.17
- linux-oem-5.6
- linux-oem-6.0
- linux-oem-6.1 (fixed in 6.1.0-1026.26)
- linux-oem-6.5 (fixed in 6.5.0-1009.10)
- linux-oracle (fixed in 5.15.0-1049.55)
- linux-oracle-5.0
- linux-oracle-5.11
- linux-oracle-5.13
- linux-oracle-5.15 (fixed in 5.15.0-1049.55~20.04.1)
- linux-oracle-5.3
- linux-oracle-5.4 (fixed in 5.4.0-1115.124~18.04.1)
- linux-oracle-5.8
- linux-raspi (fixed in 5.15.0-1044.47)
- linux-raspi-5.4 (fixed in 5.4.0-1100.112~18.04.1)
- linux-raspi-realtime
- linux-raspi2
- linux-realtime (fixed in 5.15.0-1052.58)
- linux-riscv
- linux-riscv-5.11
- linux-riscv-5.15 (fixed in 5.15.0-1047.51~20.04.1)
- linux-riscv-5.19
- linux-riscv-5.8
- linux-starfive-5.19
- linux-starfive-6.2
- linux-xilinx-zynqmp (fixed in 5.15.0-1027.31)
Timeline and source
Published on 1 November 2023 and last revised on 17 August 2026. No public exploit is currently recorded for this entry. Record sourced from OSV.
References
ubuntu.com (Report)
git.kernel.org (Report)
www.openwall.com (Report)
lore.kernel.org (Report)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
ubuntu.com (Advisory)
www.cve.org (Report)
Other advisories for this package
linux has other advisories on record. If you are patching this one, these are worth checking on the same host:
- DEBIAN-CVE-2022-4994 (published 30 Jul 2026)
- CVE-2026-35233 (4.4 Medium, published 1 May 2026)
- CVE-2026-21996 (3.3 Low, published 1 May 2026)
- CVE-2026-21991 (5.5 Medium, published 16 Mar 2026)
- CGA-mcwh-q4vm-9f29 (published 29 Jan 2026)
- CGA-w6xv-3fg4-grm5 (published 29 Jan 2026)
- CGA-8vhr-fq3f-qx7q (published 7 Jan 2026)
- CGA-p49v-mx3v-9ff2 (published 7 Jan 2026)
Same weakness in other software
These advisories are the same class of weakness (CWE-416: Use After Free) in other software:
- CVE-2022-21540 (5.3 Medium, published 8 May 2026)
- CVE-2022-50552 (7.8 High, published 7 Oct 2025)
- CVE-2022-50542 (7.8 High, published 7 Oct 2025)
- CVE-2022-50496 (7.8 High, published 4 Oct 2025)
- CVE-2022-50492 (7.8 High, published 4 Oct 2025)
- CVE-2022-50488 (7.8 High, published 4 Oct 2025)
- CVE-2022-50507 (7.8 High, published 4 Oct 2025)
- CVE-2022-50423 (7.8 High, published 1 Oct 2025)
CVE-2023-5178 on other distributions
Each distribution ships its own build and its own fixed version. Pick the one you run:
Details
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Affected Packages
| Software | From version | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| linux | — | 5.15.0-91.101 |
| linux-allwinner-5.19 | — | — |
| linux-aws | — | 5.15.0-1051.56 |
| linux-aws-5.0 | — | — |
| linux-aws-5.11 | — | — |
| linux-aws-5.13 | — | — |
| linux-aws-5.15 | — | 5.15.0-1051.56~20.04.1 |
| linux-aws-5.19 | — | — |
| linux-aws-5.3 | — | — |
| linux-aws-5.4 | — | 5.4.0-1116.126~18.04.1 |
| linux-aws-5.8 | — | — |
| linux-aws-6.2 | — | 6.2.0-1017.17~22.04.1 |
| linux-aws-6.5 | — | — |
| linux-aws-fips | — | — |
| linux-azure | — | 5.15.0-1053.61 |
| linux-azure-5.11 | — | — |
| linux-azure-5.13 | — | — |
| linux-azure-5.15 | — | 5.15.0-1053.61~20.04.1 |
| linux-azure-5.19 | — | — |
| linux-azure-5.3 | — | — |
| linux-azure-5.4 | — | 5.4.0-1121.128~18.04.1 |
| linux-azure-5.8 | — | — |
| linux-azure-6.2 | — | 6.2.0-1018.18~22.04.1 |
| linux-azure-6.5 | — | — |
| linux-azure-edge | — | — |
| linux-azure-fde | — | — |
| linux-azure-fde-5.19 | — | — |
| linux-azure-fde-6.2 | — | 6.2.0-1018.18~22.04.1.1 |
| linux-azure-fde-6.8 | — | — |
| linux-azure-fips | — | — |
| linux-bluefield | — | — |
| linux-fips | — | — |
| linux-gcp | — | 5.15.0-1048.56 |
| linux-gcp-5.11 | — | — |
| linux-gcp-5.13 | — | — |
| linux-gcp-5.15 | — | 5.15.0-1048.56~20.04.1 |
| linux-gcp-5.19 | — | — |
| linux-gcp-5.3 | — | — |
| linux-gcp-5.4 | — | 5.4.0-1120.129~18.04.1 |
| linux-gcp-5.8 | — | — |
| linux-gcp-6.2 | — | 6.2.0-1021.23~22.04.1 |
| linux-gcp-fips | — | — |
| linux-gke | — | 5.15.0-1048.53 |
| linux-gke-4.15 | — | — |
| linux-gke-5.15 | — | — |
| linux-gke-5.4 | — | — |
| linux-gkeop | — | 5.15.0-1034.40 |
| linux-gkeop-5.15 | — | 5.15.0-1034.40~20.04.1 |
| linux-gkeop-5.4 | — | — |
| linux-hwe | — | — |
| linux-hwe-5.11 | — | — |
| linux-hwe-5.13 | — | — |
| linux-hwe-5.15 | — | 5.15.0-91.101~20.04.1 |
| linux-hwe-5.19 | — | — |
| linux-hwe-5.4 | — | 5.4.0-169.187~18.04.1 |
| linux-hwe-5.8 | — | — |
| linux-hwe-6.2 | — | 6.2.0-39.40~22.04.1 |
| linux-hwe-edge | — | — |
| linux-ibm | — | 5.15.0-1044.47 |
| linux-ibm-5.15 | — | 5.15.0-1044.47~20.04.1 |
| linux-ibm-5.4 | — | 5.4.0-1063.68~18.04.1 |
| linux-intel-5.13 | — | — |
| linux-intel-iot-realtime | — | 5.15.0-1044.46 |
| linux-intel-iotg | — | 5.15.0-1046.52 |
| linux-intel-iotg-5.15 | — | 5.15.0-1046.52~20.04.1 |
| linux-iot | — | 5.4.0-1028.29 |
| linux-kvm | — | 5.15.0-1048.53 |
| linux-lowlatency | — | 5.15.0-91.101 |
| linux-lowlatency-hwe-5.15 | — | 5.15.0-91.101~20.04.1 |
| linux-lowlatency-hwe-5.19 | — | — |
| linux-lowlatency-hwe-6.2 | — | 6.2.0-1018.18~22.04.1 |
| linux-nvidia | — | 5.15.0-1042.42 |
| linux-nvidia-6.2 | — | 6.2.0-1013.13 |
| linux-nvidia-6.5 | — | 6.5.0-1007.7 |
| linux-nvidia-tegra | — | 5.15.0-1020.20 |
| linux-nvidia-tegra-5.15 | — | 5.15.0-1020.20~20.04.1 |
| linux-nvidia-tegra-igx | — | 5.15.0-1007.7 |
| linux-oem | — | — |
| linux-oem-5.10 | — | — |
| linux-oem-5.13 | — | — |
| linux-oem-5.14 | — | — |
| linux-oem-5.17 | — | — |
| linux-oem-5.6 | — | — |
| linux-oem-6.0 | — | — |
| linux-oem-6.1 | — | 6.1.0-1026.26 |
| linux-oem-6.5 | — | 6.5.0-1009.10 |
| linux-oracle | — | 5.15.0-1049.55 |
| linux-oracle-5.0 | — | — |
| linux-oracle-5.11 | — | — |
| linux-oracle-5.13 | — | — |
| linux-oracle-5.15 | — | 5.15.0-1049.55~20.04.1 |
| linux-oracle-5.3 | — | — |
| linux-oracle-5.4 | — | 5.4.0-1115.124~18.04.1 |
| linux-oracle-5.8 | — | — |
| linux-raspi | — | 5.15.0-1044.47 |
| linux-raspi-5.4 | — | 5.4.0-1100.112~18.04.1 |
| linux-raspi-realtime | — | — |
| linux-raspi2 | — | — |
| linux-realtime | — | 5.15.0-1052.58 |
| linux-riscv | — | — |
| linux-riscv-5.11 | — | — |
| linux-riscv-5.15 | — | 5.15.0-1047.51~20.04.1 |
| linux-riscv-5.19 | — | — |
| linux-riscv-5.8 | — | — |
| linux-starfive-5.19 | — | — |
| linux-starfive-6.2 | — | — |
| linux-xilinx-zynqmp | — | 5.15.0-1027.31 |
References
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