Memory Leak Vulnerability in Linux Kernel Affecting Ath11k Firmware Statistics

CVE-2023-53602

What is CVE-2023-53602?

The Linux kernel has a vulnerability in the ath11k driver that leads to a memory leak associated with the retrieval and management of firmware statistics. Specifically, memory allocated for various statistics related to physical devices, virtual devices, and beacon notifications remains unreleased when the module is removed (rmmod). This issue can result in resource exhaustion over time if not addressed. The vulnerability has been resolved by ensuring that the ath11k_fw_stats_free() function is called before the hardware unregisters, thus preventing memory leaks and improving system stability.

References