{"id":"CVE-2023-52436","state":"PUBLISHED","title":"f2fs: explicitly null-terminate the xattr list","description":"In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nf2fs: explicitly null-terminate the xattr list\n\nWhen setting an xattr, explicitly null-terminate the xattr list.  This\neliminates the fragile assumption that the unused xattr space is always\nzeroed.","publishedAt":"2024-02-20T18:34:47.387Z","updatedAt":"2026-08-15T12:23:45.392Z","severity":{"score":7.8,"label":"High","version":"3.1","vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H","source":"Linux"},"assigner":"Linux","products":["Linux Linux"],"affected":[{"vendor":"Linux","product":"Linux","defaultStatus":"unaffected","versions":[{"version":"af48b85b8cd3fbb12c9b6759c16db6d69c0b03da","status":"affected","lessThan":"16ae3132ff7746894894927c1892493693b89135","versionType":"git"},{"version":"af48b85b8cd3fbb12c9b6759c16db6d69c0b03da","status":"affected","lessThan":"12cf91e23b126718a96b914f949f2cdfeadc7b2a","versionType":"git"},{"version":"af48b85b8cd3fbb12c9b6759c16db6d69c0b03da","status":"affected","lessThan":"3e47740091b05ac8d7836a33afd8646b6863ca52","versionType":"git"},{"version":"af48b85b8cd3fbb12c9b6759c16db6d69c0b03da","status":"affected","lessThan":"32a6cfc67675ee96fe107aeed5af9776fec63f11","versionType":"git"},{"version":"af48b85b8cd3fbb12c9b6759c16db6d69c0b03da","status":"affected","lessThan":"5de9e9dd1828db9b8b962f7ca42548bd596deb8a","versionType":"git"},{"version":"af48b85b8cd3fbb12c9b6759c16db6d69c0b03da","status":"affected","lessThan":"2525d1ba225b5c167162fa344013c408e8b4de36","versionType":"git"},{"version":"af48b85b8cd3fbb12c9b6759c16db6d69c0b03da","status":"affected","lessThan":"f6c30bfe5a49bc38cae985083a11016800708fea","versionType":"git"},{"version":"af48b85b8cd3fbb12c9b6759c16db6d69c0b03da","status":"affected","lessThan":"e26b6d39270f5eab0087453d9b544189a38c8564","versionType":"git"}],"repo":"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git","programFiles":["fs/f2fs/xattr.c"]},{"vendor":"Linux","product":"Linux","defaultStatus":"affected","versions":[{"version":"3.8","status":"affected"},{"version":"0","status":"unaffected","lessThan":"3.8","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"4.19.306","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"4.19.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"5.4.268","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"5.4.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"5.10.209","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"5.10.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"5.15.148","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"5.15.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.1.74","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.1.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.6.13","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.6.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.7.1","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.7.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.8","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"*","versionType":"original_commit_for_fix"}],"repo":"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git","programFiles":["fs/f2fs/xattr.c"]}],"references":["https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/16ae3132ff7746894894927c1892493693b89135","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/12cf91e23b126718a96b914f949f2cdfeadc7b2a","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3e47740091b05ac8d7836a33afd8646b6863ca52","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/32a6cfc67675ee96fe107aeed5af9776fec63f11","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/5de9e9dd1828db9b8b962f7ca42548bd596deb8a","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2525d1ba225b5c167162fa344013c408e8b4de36","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f6c30bfe5a49bc38cae985083a11016800708fea","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e26b6d39270f5eab0087453d9b544189a38c8564","https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2024/06/msg00016.html","https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2024/06/msg00020.html"],"weaknesses":[],"ingestedAt":"2026-10-29T20:06:33.064Z","source":{"repository":"CVEProject/cvelistV5","path":"cves/2023/52xxx/CVE-2023-52436.json","commit":"556c9d3a8cd17e218bb8e452ba7cd619a384ff47"},"raw":{"dataType":"CVE_RECORD","dataVersion":"5.2","cveMetadata":{"cveId":"CVE-2023-52436","state":"PUBLISHED","datePublished":"2024-02-20T18:34:47.387Z","dateUpdated":"2026-08-15T12:23:45.392Z","assignerShortName":"Linux","assignerOrgId":"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67","dateReserved":"2024-02-20T12:30:33.290Z"},"containers":{"cna":{"title":"f2fs: explicitly null-terminate the xattr list","descriptions":[{"lang":"en","value":"In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nf2fs: explicitly null-terminate the xattr list\n\nWhen setting an xattr, explicitly null-terminate the xattr list.  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it is not reachable from the network stack or remote filesystem servers.\nAC:L - An attacker who can write xattrs on an f2fs inode can reliably invoke the buggy set path; exploitation does not depend on a race or other condition outside the attacker’s influence once residual non-zero unused xattr bytes exist (common on flash/corrupt or previously dirty xattr regions).\nPR:L - user.* xattrs are enabled by default and only require an unprivileged caller with MAY_WRITE on their own file/dir (typical Android app on f2fs userdata); CAP_SYS_ADMIN is not required.\nUI:N - On a system where f2fs is already mounted (e.g., Android /data), the attacker triggers the bug directly via syscalls with no victim action such as mounting a malicious image.\nS:U - Impact stays within the host kernel’s authority (local memory corruption / privilege boundary of the same OS); this is not a VM, IOMMU, or other cross-authority escape.\nC:H - An unterminated xattr list causes out-of-bounds reads while walking entries (historically KASAN slab-OOB in getxattr and leakage via listxattr), which can disclose arbitrary kernel memory when bounds checks are absent or bypassed.\nI:H - Out-of-bounds parsing of attacker-influenced leftover xattr bytes can corrupt adjacent kernel memory and is treated as enabling write/control-flow impact under the overestimate-severity rule for memory-corruption bugs.\nA:H - The same OOB walks have caused kernel page faults/oopses and hard failures in related f2fs xattr corruption bugs, so availability impact is a full kernel crash."}]}],"providerMetadata":{"shortName":"Linux","orgId":"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67","dateUpdated":"2026-08-15T12:23:45.392Z"},"cpeApplicability":[{"nodes":[{"operator":"OR","negate":false,"cpeMatch":[{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"3.8","versionEndExcluding":"4.19.306"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"3.8","versionEndExcluding":"5.4.268"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"3.8","versionEndExcluding":"5.10.209"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"3.8","versionEndExcluding":"5.15.148"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"3.8","versionEndExcluding":"6.1.74"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"3.8","versionEndExcluding":"6.6.13"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"3.8","versionEndExcluding":"6.7.1"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"3.8","versionEndExcluding":"6.8"}]}]}],"x_generator":{"engine":"bippy-1.2.0"}},"adp":[{"title":"CISA ADP Vulnrichment","metrics":[{"other":{"type":"ssvc","content":{"id":"CVE-2023-52436","role":"CISA Coordinator","options":[{"Exploitation":"none"},{"Automatable":"no"},{"Technical Impact":"partial"}],"version":"2.0.3","timestamp":"2024-02-21T20:39:15.806517Z"}}}],"providerMetadata":{"shortName":"CISA-ADP","orgId":"134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0","dateUpdated":"2024-06-04T17:23:01.871Z"}},{"title":"CVE Program Container","references":[{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/16ae3132ff7746894894927c1892493693b89135","tags":["x_transferred"]},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/12cf91e23b126718a96b914f949f2cdfeadc7b2a","tags":["x_transferred"]},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3e47740091b05ac8d7836a33afd8646b6863ca52","tags":["x_transferred"]},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/32a6cfc67675ee96fe107aeed5af9776fec63f11","tags":["x_transferred"]},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/5de9e9dd1828db9b8b962f7ca42548bd596deb8a","tags":["x_transferred"]},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2525d1ba225b5c167162fa344013c408e8b4de36","tags":["x_transferred"]},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/f6c30bfe5a49bc38cae985083a11016800708fea","tags":["x_transferred"]},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/e26b6d39270f5eab0087453d9b544189a38c8564","tags":["x_transferred"]},{"url":"https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2024/06/msg00016.html","tags":["x_transferred"]},{"url":"https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2024/06/msg00020.html","tags":["x_transferred"]}],"providerMetadata":{"shortName":"CVE","orgId":"af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108","dateUpdated":"2024-08-02T22:55:41.676Z"}}]}}}