CVE-2023-4211
A local non-privileged user can make improper GPU memory processing operations to gain access to already freed memory.
- CVSS
- 5.5Mediumscored by CISA
- Exploited in the wild
- Yes, in CISA KEV since 3 Oct 2023CISA deadline for US federal agencies: 24 Oct 2023
- EPSS
- 0.97%chance of exploitation in the next 30 daystop 38% of scored CVEsFIRST score of 11 Nov 2026
- Fix
- Patch availablesee the advisories in the references
- Published
- 1 Oct 2023analysed here 12 Nov 2026
Do first. Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable. (CISA's required action for this KEV entry)
Summary
Triage
The summary, impact and action text on this page are written by our AI analysis pipeline, or taken from the NVD description when a CVE was imported from NVD. They are not the vendor's wording: check them against the sources. A longer AI executive summary and technical analysis are generated for signed-in accounts on the Max plan.
Affected products
| Product | Affected versions | Vendor says fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| Arm Ltd Arm 5th Gen GPU Architecture Kernel Driver | >= r41p0 and <= r42p0Vendor says fixed in: not stated | |
| Arm Ltd Bifrost GPU Kernel Driver | >= r0p0 and <= r42p0Vendor says fixed in: not stated | |
| Arm Ltd Midgard GPU Kernel Driver | >= r12p0 and <= r32p0Vendor says fixed in: not stated | |
| Arm Ltd Valhall GPU Kernel Driver | >= r19p0 and <= r42p0Vendor says fixed in: not stated |
As published in the CVE Program record. A version outside these ranges is not a statement that it is unaffected — vendors sometimes understate a range, and distribution-backported builds carry upstream numbers that do not reflect what was patched into them.
Products named in our analysis
- arm:5th_gen_gpu_architecture_kernel_driver
- arm:bifrost_gpu_kernel_driver
- arm:midgard_gpu_kernel_driver
- arm:valhall_gpu_kernel_driver
Fix and mitigation
WAF and other mitigations
Can a WAF block it? No. The attack needs local access to the machine, so a WAF is not on its path.
Also consider: patch
Based on the attack vector (local or physical access). We check Cloudflare, AWS, Google Cloud Armor and Azure; for Akamai, Imperva, Fastly, F5, ask your vendor.
Remediation steps (AI-written)
Step-by-step remediation is generated for accounts on the Max plan, for CVEs that match a technology in their stack. Add this technology to your stack to see the fix checklist.
Exploitation evidence
- CISA KEV catalog
- Listed since 3 Oct 2023.
- CISA due date
- 24 Oct 2023, the remediation deadline for US federal agencies
- CISA required action
- Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.
- Public exploit code
- None on record in Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei templates or PoC-in-GitHub.
- CISA SSVC
- exploitation active, automatable no, technical impact totalAssessed by CISA 15 Nov 2023 (SSVC 2.0.3). Exploitation is none, poc (public proof of concept) or active.
Timeline
- 1 Oct 2023Published
- 3 Oct 2023Added to CISA KEV (exploited in the wild)1 day later
- 24 Oct 2023CISA remediation due date (US federal agencies)21 days later
- 15 Nov 2023CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation active23 days later
- 21 Oct 2025CVE record last updated706 days (about 2 years) later
- 12 Nov 2026Analysed by vulneraibility.com387 days (about 1 year) later
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
| Metric | Value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Attack vector | LocalLocal access required (shell, logged-in user). | Local access required (shell, logged-in user). |
| Attack complexity | LowRepeatable attack, no special conditions. | Repeatable attack, no special conditions. |
| Privileges required | LowThe attacker needs basic user privileges. | The attacker needs basic user privileges. |
| User interaction | NoneNo victim action needed. | No victim action needed. |
| Scope | UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component. | Impact stays within the vulnerable component. |
| Confidentiality | HighTotal data disclosure possible. | Total data disclosure possible. |
| Integrity | NoneNo unauthorised modification. | No unauthorised modification. |
| Availability | NoneThe service stays up. | The service stays up. |
Common questions
Is CVE-2023-4211 being exploited?
Yes. CVE-2023-4211 appears in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which means exploitation in the wild has been confirmed and reported. Treat it as active rather than theoretical, and patch it ahead of higher-scoring vulnerabilities that carry no exploitation evidence.
How severe is CVE-2023-4211?
CVE-2023-4211 is rated Medium with a CVSS score of 5.5. Severity describes how bad exploitation would be, not how likely it is: pair it with exploitation evidence before deciding what to patch first.
Is there a patch for CVE-2023-4211?
Yes. A fix has been recorded for CVE-2023-4211. The vendor advisory is the authority on the exact fixed version — apply it from there rather than from a summary.
What does CVE-2023-4211 affect?
CVE-2023-4211 affects arm:5th_gen_gpu_architecture_kernel_driver, arm:bifrost_gpu_kernel_driver, arm:midgard_gpu_kernel_driver, arm:valhall_gpu_kernel_driver. Confirm the exact affected versions against the vendor advisory before deciding you are exposed.
Exploitation status reflects CISA's KEV catalog as we last synced it. Check the catalog directly.
References
2 references in the CVE record, grouped by the tags the record gives them.
Other links (2)
- developer.arm.com /Arm%20Security%20Center/Mali%20GPU%20Driver%20Vulnerabilities
- cisa.gov /known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2023-4211
Where the data on this page comes from
- CVE List (CVE.org): description, affected versions, references; CVE Terms of Use
- NVD: CVSS and CPE data
- CISA KEV catalog: exploitation, date added, due date
- CISA Vulnrichment (ADP): SSVC decision points
- FIRST EPSS: exploit probability and percentile
Summary, impact and triage tags: written by our AI analysis pipeline from the sources above. Check them against the sources.
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