CVE-2023-54276: In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: nfsd: move init of percpu reply_cache_stats counters back to nfsd_init

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: nfsd: move init of percpu reply_cache_stats counters back to nfsd_init_net Commit f5f9d4a3

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: nfsd: move init of percpu reply_cache_stats counters back to nfsd_init_net Commit f5f9d4a314da ("nfsd: move reply cache initialization into nfsd startup") moved the initialization of the reply cache into nfsd startup, but didn't account for the stats counters, which can be accessed before nfsd is ever started. The result can be a NULL pointer dereference when someone accesses /proc/fs/nfsd/reply_cache_stats while nfsd is still shut down. This is a regression and a user-triggerable oops in the right situation: - non-x86_64 arch - /proc/fs/nfsd is mounted in the namespace - nfsd is not started in the namespace - unprivileged user calls "cat /proc/fs/nfsd/reply_cache_stats" Although this is easy to trigger on some arches (like aarch64), on x86_64, calling this_cpu_ptr(NULL) evidently returns a pointer to the fixed_percpu_data. That struct looks just enough like a newly initialized percpu var to allow nfsd_reply_cache_stats_show to access it without Oopsing. Move the initialization of the per-net+per-cpu reply-cache counters back into nfsd_init_net, while leaving the rest of the reply cache allocations to be done

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 0.20%, higher than 9% 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.

Check your own setup

Website check: reads what your site runs from the outside (WordPress version, plugins it can see, old server software) and matches it against this database.
Server check: what your web server says about itself, and whether that version has known flaws.

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.

Weekly security brief

The flaws that hit local websites, every Friday.

One short email: what got exploited this week, which WordPress plugins broke, and what to check. Unsubscribe in one click.