CVE-2023-52707: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sched/psi: Fix use-after-free in ep_remove_wait_queue() If a non-root cgroup gets removed

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sched/psi: Fix use-after-free in ep_remove_wait_queue() If a non-root cgroup gets removed

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: sched/psi: Fix use-after-free in ep_remove_wait_queue() If a non-root cgroup gets removed when there is a thread that registered trigger and is polling on a pressure file within the cgroup, the polling waitqueue gets freed in the following path: do_rmdir cgroup_rmdir kernfs_drain_open_files cgroup_file_release cgroup_pressure_release psi_trigger_destroy However, the polling thread still has a reference to the pressure file and will access the freed waitqueue when the file is closed or upon exit: fput ep_eventpoll_release ep_free ep_remove_wait_queue remove_wait_queue This results in use-after-free as pasted below. The fundamental problem here is that cgroup_file_release() (and consequently waitqueue's lifetime) is not tied to the file's real lifetime. Using wake_up_pollfree() here might be less than ideal, but it is in line with the comment at commit 42288cb44c4b ("wait: add wake_up_pollfree()") since the waitqueue's lifetime is not tied to file's one and can be considered as another special case. While this would be fixable by somehow making cgrou

Description from the National Vulnerability Database, published by 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

What it means for a small business

Linux is on the computers, phones or browsers your team uses every day. Turn on automatic updates and restart: most of these fixes only take effect after a restart.

How likely is an attack? The Exploit Prediction Scoring System, run by FIRST (the global association of security response teams), puts the odds of this one being exploited in the next 30 days at 0.26%, higher than 18% of CVEs. That’s low, but low isn’t zero, and the odds jump the day someone publishes an exploit. Scored October 29, 2026, updated daily.

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Sources

Part of the Huttenlocher Technologies vulnerability database, refreshed twice a day from CISA and the NVD. The title, category and plain-language guidance are ours; check the linked record before acting on a detail. This is general guidance, not a review of your systems.

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