CVE-2023-33951 Explained : Impact and Mitigation

A race condition vulnerability in the vmwgfx driver in the Linux kernel has been identified, potentially leading to an information disclosure risk for local privileged users.

Understanding CVE-2023-33951

This section delves into the details surrounding CVE-2023-33951.

What is CVE-2023-33951?

CVE-2023-33951 is a race condition vulnerability found in the Linux kernel's vmwgfx driver. This flaw arises from improper locking during the handling of GEM objects, enabling a local privileged user to disclose information within the kernel context.

The Impact of CVE-2023-33951

The vulnerability poses a medium severity risk, with high confidentiality impact and low availability impact. The affected component is the Linux kernel's vmwgfx driver, with a CVSS base score of 6.7.

Technical Details of CVE-2023-33951

In this section, we explore the technical aspects of CVE-2023-33951.

Vulnerability Description

The vulnerability arises from a race condition in the vmwgfx driver's handling of GEM objects, due to improper locking mechanisms.

Affected Systems and Versions

For Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8: Versions 4.18.0-513.5.1.rt7.307.el8_9 and 4.18.0-513.5.1.el8_9 are affected.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 is impacted by version 5.14.0-362.8.1.el9_3.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 and 7 have unaffected versions.
Fedora is also unaffected by this vulnerability.

Exploitation Mechanism

The flaw allows a local privileged user to exploit the race condition and potentially disclose sensitive information within the kernel context.

Mitigation and Prevention

This section provides guidance on mitigating the risks associated with CVE-2023-33951.

Immediate Steps to Take

Users can prevent exploitation by blacklisting the affected

vmwgfx

kernel module. Visit the provided link for instructions.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly update systems and follow security best practices to minimize the risk of similar vulnerabilities.

Patching and Updates

Refer to the provided Red Hat security advisories for patches and updates to address CVE-2023-33951.