{"id":"CVE-2023-53998","state":"PUBLISHED","title":"hwrng: virtio - Fix race on data_avail and actual data","description":"In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nhwrng: virtio - Fix race on data_avail and actual data\n\nThe virtio rng device kicks off a new entropy request whenever the\ndata available reaches zero.  When a new request occurs at the end\nof a read operation, that is, when the result of that request is\nonly needed by the next reader, then there is a race between the\nwriting of the new data and the next reader.\n\nThis is because there is no synchronisation whatsoever between the\nwriter and the reader.\n\nFix this by writing data_avail with smp_store_release and reading\nit with smp_load_acquire when we first enter read.  The subsequent\nreads are safe because they're either protected by the first load\nacquire, or by the completion mechanism.\n\nAlso remove the redundant zeroing of data_idx in random_recv_done\n(data_idx must already be zero at this point) and data_avail in\nrequest_entropy (ditto).","publishedAt":"2025-12-24T10:55:34.856Z","updatedAt":"2026-05-11T19:53:18.694Z","severity":null,"assigner":"Linux","products":["Linux Linux"],"affected":[{"vendor":"Linux","product":"Linux","defaultStatus":"unaffected","versions":[{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"241ef15776a7c8505008db689175b320d345ecd3","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"a43bcb0b661cbbf3ad797d2aee6b6fd06b8fc69d","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"77471e4912d3960dafe141e268c44be8024fe4dc","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"c76d991b6f01a5d931e7053a73bc9524975a5215","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"22c30022cde6e2c88612b3a499223cfa912f1bc7","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"318657b4c2077289659f1cd9e2a34f6a3b208e3e","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"2fc91f156b3f3446a1bce80cf4adedcbf41271c2","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"ac52578d6e8d300dd50f790f29a24169b1edd26c","versionType":"git"}],"repo":"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git","programFiles":["drivers/char/hw_random/virtio-rng.c"]},{"vendor":"Linux","product":"Linux","defaultStatus":"affected","versions":[{"version":"2.6.26","status":"affected"},{"version":"0","status":"unaffected","lessThan":"2.6.26","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"4.19.291","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"4.19.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"5.4.251","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"5.4.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"5.10.188","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"5.10.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"5.15.121","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"5.15.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.1.39","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.1.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.3.13","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.3.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.4.4","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.4.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.5","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"*","versionType":"original_commit_for_fix"}],"repo":"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git","programFiles":["drivers/char/hw_random/virtio-rng.c"]}],"references":["https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/241ef15776a7c8505008db689175b320d345ecd3","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a43bcb0b661cbbf3ad797d2aee6b6fd06b8fc69d","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/77471e4912d3960dafe141e268c44be8024fe4dc","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c76d991b6f01a5d931e7053a73bc9524975a5215","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/22c30022cde6e2c88612b3a499223cfa912f1bc7","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/318657b4c2077289659f1cd9e2a34f6a3b208e3e","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2fc91f156b3f3446a1bce80cf4adedcbf41271c2","https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ac52578d6e8d300dd50f790f29a24169b1edd26c"],"weaknesses":[],"ingestedAt":"2026-10-29T20:06:33.064Z","source":{"repository":"CVEProject/cvelistV5","path":"cves/2023/53xxx/CVE-2023-53998.json","commit":"556c9d3a8cd17e218bb8e452ba7cd619a384ff47"},"raw":{"dataType":"CVE_RECORD","dataVersion":"5.2","cveMetadata":{"cveId":"CVE-2023-53998","state":"PUBLISHED","datePublished":"2025-12-24T10:55:34.856Z","dateUpdated":"2026-05-11T19:53:18.694Z","assignerShortName":"Linux","assignerOrgId":"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67","dateReserved":"2025-12-24T10:53:46.176Z"},"containers":{"cna":{"title":"hwrng: virtio - Fix race on data_avail and actual data","descriptions":[{"lang":"en","value":"In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nhwrng: virtio - Fix race on data_avail and actual data\n\nThe virtio rng device kicks off a new entropy request whenever the\ndata available reaches zero.  When a new request occurs at the end\nof a read operation, that is, when the result of that request is\nonly needed by the next reader, then there is a race between the\nwriting of the new data and the next reader.\n\nThis is because there is no synchronisation whatsoever between the\nwriter and the reader.\n\nFix this by writing data_avail with smp_store_release and reading\nit with smp_load_acquire when we first enter read.  The subsequent\nreads are safe because they're either protected by the first load\nacquire, or by the completion mechanism.\n\nAlso remove the redundant zeroing of data_idx in random_recv_done\n(data_idx must already be zero at this point) and data_avail in\nrequest_entropy (ditto)."}],"affected":[{"vendor":"Linux","product":"Linux","defaultStatus":"unaffected","versions":[{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"241ef15776a7c8505008db689175b320d345ecd3","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"a43bcb0b661cbbf3ad797d2aee6b6fd06b8fc69d","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"77471e4912d3960dafe141e268c44be8024fe4dc","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"c76d991b6f01a5d931e7053a73bc9524975a5215","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"22c30022cde6e2c88612b3a499223cfa912f1bc7","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"318657b4c2077289659f1cd9e2a34f6a3b208e3e","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"2fc91f156b3f3446a1bce80cf4adedcbf41271c2","versionType":"git"},{"version":"f7f510ec195781c857ab76366a3e1c59e1caae42","status":"affected","lessThan":"ac52578d6e8d300dd50f790f29a24169b1edd26c","versionType":"git"}],"repo":"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git","programFiles":["drivers/char/hw_random/virtio-rng.c"]},{"vendor":"Linux","product":"Linux","defaultStatus":"affected","versions":[{"version":"2.6.26","status":"affected"},{"version":"0","status":"unaffected","lessThan":"2.6.26","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"4.19.291","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"4.19.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"5.4.251","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"5.4.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"5.10.188","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"5.10.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"5.15.121","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"5.15.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.1.39","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.1.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.3.13","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.3.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.4.4","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"6.4.*","versionType":"semver"},{"version":"6.5","status":"unaffected","lessThanOrEqual":"*","versionType":"original_commit_for_fix"}],"repo":"https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git","programFiles":["drivers/char/hw_random/virtio-rng.c"]}],"references":[{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/241ef15776a7c8505008db689175b320d345ecd3"},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a43bcb0b661cbbf3ad797d2aee6b6fd06b8fc69d"},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/77471e4912d3960dafe141e268c44be8024fe4dc"},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/c76d991b6f01a5d931e7053a73bc9524975a5215"},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/22c30022cde6e2c88612b3a499223cfa912f1bc7"},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/318657b4c2077289659f1cd9e2a34f6a3b208e3e"},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/2fc91f156b3f3446a1bce80cf4adedcbf41271c2"},{"url":"https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/ac52578d6e8d300dd50f790f29a24169b1edd26c"}],"providerMetadata":{"shortName":"Linux","orgId":"416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67","dateUpdated":"2026-05-11T19:53:18.694Z"},"cpeApplicability":[{"nodes":[{"operator":"OR","negate":false,"cpeMatch":[{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"2.6.26","versionEndExcluding":"4.19.291"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"2.6.26","versionEndExcluding":"5.4.251"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"2.6.26","versionEndExcluding":"5.10.188"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"2.6.26","versionEndExcluding":"5.15.121"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"2.6.26","versionEndExcluding":"6.1.39"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"2.6.26","versionEndExcluding":"6.3.13"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"2.6.26","versionEndExcluding":"6.4.4"},{"vulnerable":true,"criteria":"cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*","versionStartIncluding":"2.6.26","versionEndExcluding":"6.5"}]}]}],"x_generator":{"engine":"bippy-1.2.0"}}}}}