{"id":"CVE-2023-53522","state":"PUBLISHED","title":"cgroup,freezer: hold cpu_hotplug_lock before freezer_mutex","description":"In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\ncgroup,freezer: hold cpu_hotplug_lock before freezer_mutex\n\nsyzbot is reporting circular locking dependency between cpu_hotplug_lock\nand freezer_mutex, for commit f5d39b020809 (\"freezer,sched: Rewrite core\nfreezer logic\") replaced atomic_inc() in freezer_apply_state() with\nstatic_branch_inc() which holds cpu_hotplug_lock.\n\ncpu_hotplug_lock => cgroup_threadgroup_rwsem => freezer_mutex\n\n  cgroup_file_write() {\n    cgroup_procs_write() {\n      __cgroup_procs_write() {\n        cgroup_procs_write_start() {\n          cgroup_attach_lock() {\n            cpus_read_lock() {\n              percpu_down_read(&cpu_hotplug_lock);\n            }\n            percpu_down_write(&cgroup_threadgroup_rwsem);\n          }\n        }\n        cgroup_attach_task() {\n          cgroup_migrate() {\n            cgroup_migrate_execute() {\n              freezer_attach() {\n                mutex_lock(&freezer_mutex);\n                (...snipped...)\n              }\n            }\n          }\n        }\n        (...snipped...)\n      }\n    }\n  }\n\nfreezer_mutex => cpu_hotplug_lock\n\n  cgroup_file_write() {\n    freezer_write() {\n      freezer_change_state() {\n        mutex_lock(&freezer_mutex);\n        freezer_apply_state() {\n          static_branch_inc(&freezer_active) {\n            static_key_slow_inc() {\n              cpus_read_lock();\n              static_key_slow_inc_cpuslocked();\n              cpus_read_unlock();\n            }\n          }\n        }\n        mutex_unlock(&freezer_mutex);\n      }\n    }\n  }\n\nSwap locking order by moving cpus_read_lock() in freezer_apply_state()\nto before mutex_lock(&freezer_mutex) in freezer_change_state().","publishedAt":"2025-10-01T11:46:08.909Z","updatedAt":"2026-05-11T19:46:36.143Z","severity":null,"assigner":"Linux","products":["Linux Linux"],"affected":[{"vendor":"Linux","product":"Linux","defaultStatus":"unaffected","versions":[{"version":"f5d39b020809146cc28e6e73369bf8065e0310aa","status":"affected","lessThan":"3756171b97c307d9df8b8ded1d883eec30172085","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f5d39b020809146cc28e6e73369bf8065e0310aa","status":"affected","lessThan":"34fbb7b45bae20b551dda24337c7761ca13ce69d","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f5d39b020809146cc28e6e73369bf8065e0310aa","status":"affected","lessThan":"57dcd64c7e036299ef526b400a8d12b8a2352f26","versionType":"git"}],"repo":"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git","programFiles":["kernel/cgroup/legacy_freezer.c"]},{"vendor":"Linux","product":"Linux","defaultStatus":"affected","versions":[{"version":"6.1","status":"affected"},{"version":"0","status":"unaffected","lessThan":"6.1","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.1.25","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.1.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.2.12","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.2.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.3","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"*","versionType":"original_commit_for_fix"}],"repo":"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git","programFiles":["kernel/cgroup/legacy_freezer.c"]}],"references":["https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3756171b97c307d9df8b8ded1d883eec30172085","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/34fbb7b45bae20b551dda24337c7761ca13ce69d","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/57dcd64c7e036299ef526b400a8d12b8a2352f26"],"weaknesses":[],"ingestedAt":"2026-10-29T20:06:33.064Z","source":{"repository":"CVEProject/cvelistV5","path":"cves/2023/53xxx/CVE-2023-53522.json","commit":"556c9d3a8cd17e218bb8e452ba7cd619a384ff47"},"raw":{"dataType":"CVE_RECORD","dataVersion":"5.2","cveMetadata":{"cveId":"CVE-2023-53522","state":"PUBLISHED","datePublished":"2025-10-01T11:46:08.909Z","dateUpdated":"2026-05-11T19:46:36.143Z","assignerShortName":"Linux","assignerOrgId":"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67","dateReserved":"2025-10-01T11:39:39.407Z"},"containers":{"cna":{"title":"cgroup,freezer: hold cpu_hotplug_lock before freezer_mutex","descriptions":[{"lang":"en","value":"In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\ncgroup,freezer: hold cpu_hotplug_lock before freezer_mutex\n\nsyzbot is reporting circular locking dependency between cpu_hotplug_lock\nand freezer_mutex, for commit f5d39b020809 (\"freezer,sched: Rewrite core\nfreezer logic\") replaced atomic_inc() in freezer_apply_state() with\nstatic_branch_inc() which holds cpu_hotplug_lock.\n\ncpu_hotplug_lock => cgroup_threadgroup_rwsem => freezer_mutex\n\n  cgroup_file_write() {\n    cgroup_procs_write() {\n      __cgroup_procs_write() {\n        cgroup_procs_write_start() {\n          cgroup_attach_lock() {\n            cpus_read_lock() {\n              percpu_down_read(&cpu_hotplug_lock);\n            }\n            percpu_down_write(&cgroup_threadgroup_rwsem);\n          }\n        }\n        cgroup_attach_task() {\n          cgroup_migrate() {\n            cgroup_migrate_execute() {\n              freezer_attach() {\n                mutex_lock(&freezer_mutex);\n                (...snipped...)\n              }\n            }\n          }\n        }\n        (...snipped...)\n      }\n    }\n  }\n\nfreezer_mutex => cpu_hotplug_lock\n\n  cgroup_file_write() {\n    freezer_write() {\n      freezer_change_state() {\n        mutex_lock(&freezer_mutex);\n        freezer_apply_state() {\n          static_branch_inc(&freezer_active) {\n            static_key_slow_inc() {\n              cpus_read_lock();\n              static_key_slow_inc_cpuslocked();\n              cpus_read_unlock();\n            }\n          }\n        }\n        mutex_unlock(&freezer_mutex);\n      }\n    }\n  }\n\nSwap locking order by moving cpus_read_lock() in freezer_apply_state()\nto before mutex_lock(&freezer_mutex) in freezer_change_state()."}],"affected":[{"vendor":"Linux","product":"Linux","defaultStatus":"unaffected","versions":[{"version":"f5d39b020809146cc28e6e73369bf8065e0310aa","status":"affected","lessThan":"3756171b97c307d9df8b8ded1d883eec30172085","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f5d39b020809146cc28e6e73369bf8065e0310aa","status":"affected","lessThan":"34fbb7b45bae20b551dda24337c7761ca13ce69d","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f5d39b020809146cc28e6e73369bf8065e0310aa","status":"affected","lessThan":"57dcd64c7e036299ef526b400a8d12b8a2352f26","versionType":"git"}],"repo":"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git","programFiles":["kernel/cgroup/legacy_freezer.c"]},{"vendor":"Linux","product":"Linux","defaultStatus":"affected","versions":[{"version":"6.1","status":"affected"},{"version":"0","status":"unaffected","lessThan":"6.1","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.1.25","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.1.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.2.12","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.2.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.3","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"*","versionType":"original_commit_for_fix"}],"repo":"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git","programFiles":["kernel/cgroup/legacy_freezer.c"]}],"references":[{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/3756171b97c307d9df8b8ded1d883eec30172085"},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/34fbb7b45bae20b551dda24337c7761ca13ce69d"},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/57dcd64c7e036299ef526b400a8d12b8a2352f26"}],"providerMetadata":{"shortName":"Linux","orgId":"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67","dateUpdated":"2026-05-11T19:46:36.143Z"},"cpeApplicability":[{"nodes":[{"operator":"OR","negate":false,"cpeMatch":[{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"6.1","versionEndExcluding":"6.1.25"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"6.1","versionEndExcluding":"6.2.12"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"6.1","versionEndExcluding":"6.3"}]}]}],"x_generator":{"engine":"bippy-1.2.0"}}}}}