CVE-2023-53781 (GCVE-0-2023-53781)
Vulnerability from cvelistv5 – Published: 2025-12-09 00:00 – Updated: 2026-10-30 12:17
VLAI
EPSS
VEX
Title
smc: Fix use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler().
Summary
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:
smc: Fix use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler().
With Eric's ref tracker, syzbot finally found a repro for
use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler() by kernel TCP
sockets. [0]
If SMC creates a kernel socket in __smc_create(), the kernel
socket is supposed to be freed in smc_clcsock_release() by
calling sock_release() when we close() the parent SMC socket.
However, at the end of smc_clcsock_release(), the kernel
socket's sk_state might not be TCP_CLOSE. This means that
we have not called inet_csk_destroy_sock() in __tcp_close()
and have not stopped the TCP timers.
The kernel socket's TCP timers can be fired later, so we
need to hold a refcnt for net as we do for MPTCP subflows
in mptcp_subflow_create_socket().
[0]:
leaked reference.
sk_alloc (./include/net/net_namespace.h:335 net/core/sock.c:2108)
inet_create (net/ipv4/af_inet.c:319 net/ipv4/af_inet.c:244)
__sock_create (net/socket.c:1546)
smc_create (net/smc/af_smc.c:3269 net/smc/af_smc.c:3284)
__sock_create (net/socket.c:1546)
__sys_socket (net/socket.c:1634 net/socket.c:1618 net/socket.c:1661)
__x64_sys_socket (net/socket.c:1672)
do_syscall_64 (arch/x86/entry/common.c:50 arch/x86/entry/common.c:80)
entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe (arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:120)
==================================================================
BUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler (net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:378 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:624 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:594)
Read of size 1 at addr ffff888052b65e0d by task syzrepro/18091
CPU: 0 PID: 18091 Comm: syzrepro Tainted: G W 6.3.0-rc4-01174-gb5d54eb5899a #7
Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS 1.16.0-1.amzn2022.0.1 04/01/2014
Call Trace:
<IRQ>
dump_stack_lvl (lib/dump_stack.c:107)
print_report (mm/kasan/report.c:320 mm/kasan/report.c:430)
kasan_report (mm/kasan/report.c:538)
tcp_write_timer_handler (net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:378 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:624 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:594)
tcp_write_timer (./include/linux/spinlock.h:390 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:643)
call_timer_fn (./arch/x86/include/asm/jump_label.h:27 ./include/linux/jump_label.h:207 ./include/trace/events/timer.h:127 kernel/time/timer.c:1701)
__run_timers.part.0 (kernel/time/timer.c:1752 kernel/time/timer.c:2022)
run_timer_softirq (kernel/time/timer.c:2037)
__do_softirq (./arch/x86/include/asm/jump_label.h:27 ./include/linux/jump_label.h:207 ./include/trace/events/irq.h:142 kernel/softirq.c:572)
__irq_exit_rcu (kernel/softirq.c:445 kernel/softirq.c:650)
irq_exit_rcu (kernel/softirq.c:664)
sysvec_apic_timer_interrupt (arch/x86/kernel/apic/apic.c:1107 (discriminator 14))
</IRQ>
Severity
7.8 (High)
SSVC
Exploitation: none
Automatable: no
Technical Impact: total
CISA Coordinator · CISA-ADP (v2.0.3)
Decision recorded 2026-10-15 21:37 UTC
Assigner
References
Impacted products
2 products
| Vendor | Product | Version | CPE status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux |
Affected:
ac7138746e14137a451f8539614cdd349153e0c0 , < 08f057bd1e559cdb388c77b18de3eea3d3d8cb24
(git)
Affected: ac7138746e14137a451f8539614cdd349153e0c0 , < 1cc41c8acfc1ee30b4868559058db97fa44b0137 (git) Affected: ac7138746e14137a451f8539614cdd349153e0c0 , < 9744d2bf19762703704ecba885b7ac282c02eacf (git) |
guessed | |
| Linux | Linux |
Affected:
4.11
Unaffected: 0 , < 4.11 (semver) Unaffected: 6.1.191 , ≤ 6.1.* (semver) Unaffected: 6.2.12 , ≤ 6.2.* (semver) Unaffected: 6.3 , ≤ * (original_commit_for_fix) |
guessed |
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"value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nsmc: Fix use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler().\n\nWith Eric\u0027s ref tracker, syzbot finally found a repro for\nuse-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler() by kernel TCP\nsockets. [0]\n\nIf SMC creates a kernel socket in __smc_create(), the kernel\nsocket is supposed to be freed in smc_clcsock_release() by\ncalling sock_release() when we close() the parent SMC socket.\n\nHowever, at the end of smc_clcsock_release(), the kernel\nsocket\u0027s sk_state might not be TCP_CLOSE. This means that\nwe have not called inet_csk_destroy_sock() in __tcp_close()\nand have not stopped the TCP timers.\n\nThe kernel socket\u0027s TCP timers can be fired later, so we\nneed to hold a refcnt for net as we do for MPTCP subflows\nin mptcp_subflow_create_socket().\n\n[0]:\nleaked reference.\n sk_alloc (./include/net/net_namespace.h:335 net/core/sock.c:2108)\n inet_create (net/ipv4/af_inet.c:319 net/ipv4/af_inet.c:244)\n __sock_create (net/socket.c:1546)\n smc_create (net/smc/af_smc.c:3269 net/smc/af_smc.c:3284)\n __sock_create (net/socket.c:1546)\n __sys_socket (net/socket.c:1634 net/socket.c:1618 net/socket.c:1661)\n __x64_sys_socket (net/socket.c:1672)\n do_syscall_64 (arch/x86/entry/common.c:50 arch/x86/entry/common.c:80)\n entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe (arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:120)\n==================================================================\nBUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler (net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:378 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:624 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:594)\nRead of size 1 at addr ffff888052b65e0d by task syzrepro/18091\n\nCPU: 0 PID: 18091 Comm: syzrepro Tainted: G W 6.3.0-rc4-01174-gb5d54eb5899a #7\nHardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS 1.16.0-1.amzn2022.0.1 04/01/2014\nCall Trace:\n \u003cIRQ\u003e\n dump_stack_lvl (lib/dump_stack.c:107)\n print_report (mm/kasan/report.c:320 mm/kasan/report.c:430)\n kasan_report (mm/kasan/report.c:538)\n tcp_write_timer_handler (net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:378 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:624 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:594)\n tcp_write_timer (./include/linux/spinlock.h:390 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:643)\n call_timer_fn (./arch/x86/include/asm/jump_label.h:27 ./include/linux/jump_label.h:207 ./include/trace/events/timer.h:127 kernel/time/timer.c:1701)\n __run_timers.part.0 (kernel/time/timer.c:1752 kernel/time/timer.c:2022)\n run_timer_softirq (kernel/time/timer.c:2037)\n __do_softirq (./arch/x86/include/asm/jump_label.h:27 ./include/linux/jump_label.h:207 ./include/trace/events/irq.h:142 kernel/softirq.c:572)\n __irq_exit_rcu (kernel/softirq.c:445 kernel/softirq.c:650)\n irq_exit_rcu (kernel/softirq.c:664)\n sysvec_apic_timer_interrupt (arch/x86/kernel/apic/apic.c:1107 (discriminator 14))\n \u003c/IRQ\u003e"
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"value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nsmc: Fix use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler().\n\nWith Eric\u0027s ref tracker, syzbot finally found a repro for\nuse-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler() by kernel TCP\nsockets. [0]\n\nIf SMC creates a kernel socket in __smc_create(), the kernel\nsocket is supposed to be freed in smc_clcsock_release() by\ncalling sock_release() when we close() the parent SMC socket.\n\nHowever, at the end of smc_clcsock_release(), the kernel\nsocket\u0027s sk_state might not be TCP_CLOSE. This means that\nwe have not called inet_csk_destroy_sock() in __tcp_close()\nand have not stopped the TCP timers.\n\nThe kernel socket\u0027s TCP timers can be fired later, so we\nneed to hold a refcnt for net as we do for MPTCP subflows\nin mptcp_subflow_create_socket().\n\n[0]:\nleaked reference.\n sk_alloc (./include/net/net_namespace.h:335 net/core/sock.c:2108)\n inet_create (net/ipv4/af_inet.c:319 net/ipv4/af_inet.c:244)\n __sock_create (net/socket.c:1546)\n smc_create (net/smc/af_smc.c:3269 net/smc/af_smc.c:3284)\n __sock_create (net/socket.c:1546)\n __sys_socket (net/socket.c:1634 net/socket.c:1618 net/socket.c:1661)\n __x64_sys_socket (net/socket.c:1672)\n do_syscall_64 (arch/x86/entry/common.c:50 arch/x86/entry/common.c:80)\n entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe (arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:120)\n==================================================================\nBUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler (net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:378 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:624 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:594)\nRead of size 1 at addr ffff888052b65e0d by task syzrepro/18091\n\nCPU: 0 PID: 18091 Comm: syzrepro Tainted: G W 6.3.0-rc4-01174-gb5d54eb5899a #7\nHardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS 1.16.0-1.amzn2022.0.1 04/01/2014\nCall Trace:\n \u003cIRQ\u003e\n dump_stack_lvl (lib/dump_stack.c:107)\n print_report (mm/kasan/report.c:320 mm/kasan/report.c:430)\n kasan_report (mm/kasan/report.c:538)\n tcp_write_timer_handler (net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:378 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:624 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:594)\n tcp_write_timer (./include/linux/spinlock.h:390 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:643)\n call_timer_fn (./arch/x86/include/asm/jump_label.h:27 ./include/linux/jump_label.h:207 ./include/trace/events/timer.h:127 kernel/time/timer.c:1701)\n __run_timers.part.0 (kernel/time/timer.c:1752 kernel/time/timer.c:2022)\n run_timer_softirq (kernel/time/timer.c:2037)\n __do_softirq (./arch/x86/include/asm/jump_label.h:27 ./include/linux/jump_label.h:207 ./include/trace/events/irq.h:142 kernel/softirq.c:572)\n __irq_exit_rcu (kernel/softirq.c:445 kernel/softirq.c:650)\n irq_exit_rcu (kernel/softirq.c:664)\n sysvec_apic_timer_interrupt (arch/x86/kernel/apic/apic.c:1107 (discriminator 14))\n \u003c/IRQ\u003e"
}
],
"id": "CVE-2023-53781",
"lastModified": "2026-10-30T13:17:19.257",
"metrics": {
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"scope": "UNCHANGED",
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"vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H",
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"published": "2025-12-09T01:16:49.280",
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"current_release_date": "2026-11-05T11:21:50+00:00",
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"product_status:fixed": "767",
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"source": "Red Hat CSAF VEX",
"status": "final",
"title": "kernel: smc: Fix use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler()",
"url": "https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2023/cve-2023-53781.json",
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"providerMetadata": {
"dateUpdated": "2026-10-15T21:37:09.533Z",
"orgId": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0",
"shortName": "CISA-ADP"
},
"title": "CISA ADP Vulnrichment"
}
],
"cna": {
"affected": [
{
"defaultStatus": "unaffected",
"product": "Linux",
"programFiles": [
"net/smc/af_smc.c"
],
"repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
"vendor": "Linux",
"versions": [
{
"lessThan": "08f057bd1e559cdb388c77b18de3eea3d3d8cb24",
"status": "affected",
"version": "ac7138746e14137a451f8539614cdd349153e0c0",
"versionType": "git"
},
{
"lessThan": "1cc41c8acfc1ee30b4868559058db97fa44b0137",
"status": "affected",
"version": "ac7138746e14137a451f8539614cdd349153e0c0",
"versionType": "git"
},
{
"lessThan": "9744d2bf19762703704ecba885b7ac282c02eacf",
"status": "affected",
"version": "ac7138746e14137a451f8539614cdd349153e0c0",
"versionType": "git"
}
]
},
{
"defaultStatus": "affected",
"product": "Linux",
"programFiles": [
"net/smc/af_smc.c"
],
"repo": "https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/stable/linux.git",
"vendor": "Linux",
"versions": [
{
"status": "affected",
"version": "4.11"
},
{
"lessThan": "4.11",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "0",
"versionType": "semver"
},
{
"lessThanOrEqual": "6.1.*",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "6.1.191",
"versionType": "semver"
},
{
"lessThanOrEqual": "6.2.*",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "6.2.12",
"versionType": "semver"
},
{
"lessThanOrEqual": "*",
"status": "unaffected",
"version": "6.3",
"versionType": "original_commit_for_fix"
}
]
}
],
"cpeApplicability": [
{
"nodes": [
{
"cpeMatch": [
{
"criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
"versionEndExcluding": "6.1.191",
"versionStartIncluding": "4.11",
"vulnerable": true
},
{
"criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
"versionEndExcluding": "6.2.12",
"versionStartIncluding": "4.11",
"vulnerable": true
},
{
"criteria": "cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
"versionEndExcluding": "6.3",
"versionStartIncluding": "4.11",
"vulnerable": true
}
],
"negate": false,
"operator": "OR"
}
]
}
],
"descriptions": [
{
"lang": "en",
"value": "In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved:\n\nsmc: Fix use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler().\n\nWith Eric\u0027s ref tracker, syzbot finally found a repro for\nuse-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler() by kernel TCP\nsockets. [0]\n\nIf SMC creates a kernel socket in __smc_create(), the kernel\nsocket is supposed to be freed in smc_clcsock_release() by\ncalling sock_release() when we close() the parent SMC socket.\n\nHowever, at the end of smc_clcsock_release(), the kernel\nsocket\u0027s sk_state might not be TCP_CLOSE. This means that\nwe have not called inet_csk_destroy_sock() in __tcp_close()\nand have not stopped the TCP timers.\n\nThe kernel socket\u0027s TCP timers can be fired later, so we\nneed to hold a refcnt for net as we do for MPTCP subflows\nin mptcp_subflow_create_socket().\n\n[0]:\nleaked reference.\n sk_alloc (./include/net/net_namespace.h:335 net/core/sock.c:2108)\n inet_create (net/ipv4/af_inet.c:319 net/ipv4/af_inet.c:244)\n __sock_create (net/socket.c:1546)\n smc_create (net/smc/af_smc.c:3269 net/smc/af_smc.c:3284)\n __sock_create (net/socket.c:1546)\n __sys_socket (net/socket.c:1634 net/socket.c:1618 net/socket.c:1661)\n __x64_sys_socket (net/socket.c:1672)\n do_syscall_64 (arch/x86/entry/common.c:50 arch/x86/entry/common.c:80)\n entry_SYSCALL_64_after_hwframe (arch/x86/entry/entry_64.S:120)\n==================================================================\nBUG: KASAN: slab-use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler (net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:378 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:624 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:594)\nRead of size 1 at addr ffff888052b65e0d by task syzrepro/18091\n\nCPU: 0 PID: 18091 Comm: syzrepro Tainted: G W 6.3.0-rc4-01174-gb5d54eb5899a #7\nHardware name: QEMU Standard PC (i440FX + PIIX, 1996), BIOS 1.16.0-1.amzn2022.0.1 04/01/2014\nCall Trace:\n \u003cIRQ\u003e\n dump_stack_lvl (lib/dump_stack.c:107)\n print_report (mm/kasan/report.c:320 mm/kasan/report.c:430)\n kasan_report (mm/kasan/report.c:538)\n tcp_write_timer_handler (net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:378 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:624 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:594)\n tcp_write_timer (./include/linux/spinlock.h:390 net/ipv4/tcp_timer.c:643)\n call_timer_fn (./arch/x86/include/asm/jump_label.h:27 ./include/linux/jump_label.h:207 ./include/trace/events/timer.h:127 kernel/time/timer.c:1701)\n __run_timers.part.0 (kernel/time/timer.c:1752 kernel/time/timer.c:2022)\n run_timer_softirq (kernel/time/timer.c:2037)\n __do_softirq (./arch/x86/include/asm/jump_label.h:27 ./include/linux/jump_label.h:207 ./include/trace/events/irq.h:142 kernel/softirq.c:572)\n __irq_exit_rcu (kernel/softirq.c:445 kernel/softirq.c:650)\n irq_exit_rcu (kernel/softirq.c:664)\n sysvec_apic_timer_interrupt (arch/x86/kernel/apic/apic.c:1107 (discriminator 14))\n \u003c/IRQ\u003e"
}
],
"metrics": [
{
"cvssV3_1": {
"baseScore": 7.8,
"baseSeverity": "HIGH",
"vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H",
"version": "3.1"
},
"scenarios": [
{
"lang": "en",
"value": "AV:L - The UAF is triggered by a locally-armed TCP timer; the attacker reaches it entirely through local syscalls (creating an AF_SMC socket, connecting it, closing it) plus network-namespace teardown. No received network packet triggers the vulnerable code path, so this is a local attack surface.\nAC:L - The attacker controls both sides: they arm the clcsock\u0027s TCP timers (e.g. connecting to an unresponsive peer so it stays non-TCP_CLOSE) and control when the net namespace is destroyed, and can spray many socket/namespace pairs to reliably land the timer firing on freed memory.\nPR:L - Triggering requires a destroyable network namespace (the init netns is never freed), which an unprivileged local user obtains via user namespaces (unshare -Urn); AF_SMC socket creation itself is not capability-gated.\nUI:N - The attacker performs all setup (socket creation, connect, close, namespace teardown) themselves; no victim action is required.\nS:U - The use-after-free corrupts a freed struct net within the kernel\u0027s own security authority; it does not cross a VM, IOMMU, or sandbox boundary.\nC:H - This is a slab use-after-free of struct net whose freed memory can be reclaimed with attacker-influenced data before the timer reads sysctl fields from it, enabling information disclosure per UAF guidance.\nI:H - The timer handlers write into the freed net object (MIB counter increments via __NET_INC_STATS), and reclaiming the freed slab enables heap-spray/write primitives, so integrity impact is High per UAF guidance.\nA:H - A use-after-free of the network namespace reliably causes kernel oops/panic (as reported by KASAN/syzbot), giving High availability impact."
}
]
}
],
"providerMetadata": {
"dateUpdated": "2026-10-30T12:17:35.780Z",
"orgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
"shortName": "Linux"
},
"references": [
{
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/08f057bd1e559cdb388c77b18de3eea3d3d8cb24"
},
{
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/1cc41c8acfc1ee30b4868559058db97fa44b0137"
},
{
"url": "https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/9744d2bf19762703704ecba885b7ac282c02eacf"
}
],
"title": "smc: Fix use-after-free in tcp_write_timer_handler().",
"x_generator": {
"engine": "bippy-1.2.0"
}
}
},
"cveMetadata": {
"assignerOrgId": "416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67",
"assignerShortName": "Linux",
"cveId": "CVE-2023-53781",
"datePublished": "2025-12-09T00:00:36.831Z",
"dateReserved": "2025-12-08T23:58:35.272Z",
"dateUpdated": "2026-10-30T12:17:35.780Z",
"state": "PUBLISHED"
},
"dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
"dataVersion": "5.2"
}
}
}
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Drag nodes to arrange them. Double-click a related vulnerability to open it, or a source to visit its link. The Physics button on the left tunes the layout and the simulation; the legend at the bottom left hides or shows nodes by kind and by sighting type.
Experimental. This forecast is provided for visualization only and may change without notice. Do not use it for operational decisions.
Forecast uses a logistic model when the trend is rising, or an exponential decay model when the trend is falling. Fitted via linearized least squares.
Sightings
| Author | Source | Type | Date | Other |
|---|
Nomenclature
- Seen: The vulnerability was mentioned, discussed, or observed by the user.
- Confirmed: The vulnerability has been validated from an analyst's perspective.
- Published Proof of Concept: A public proof of concept is available for this vulnerability.
- Exploited: The vulnerability was observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
- Patched: The vulnerability was observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
- Not exploited: The vulnerability was not observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
- Not confirmed: The user expressed doubt about the validity of the vulnerability.
- Not patched: The vulnerability was not observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
Vulnerability timeline
Sightings and recorded dates, grouped by day · UTC
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The MITRE ATT&CK techniques below are AI-generated suggestions, inferred from the description of the
vulnerability by the CIRCL/vulnerability-attack-technique-classification-roberta-base
model, served locally by ML-Gateway.
They have not been verified by an analyst and are provided for guidance only.
The approach is described in our paper Mapping CVEs to MITRE ATT&CK Techniques: A Curated Gold-Set Classifier and the Limits of LLM-Assisted Label Expansion.
Browse all ATT&CK techniques and the vulnerabilities related to each.
The approach is described in our paper Mapping CVEs to MITRE ATT&CK Techniques: A Curated Gold-Set Classifier and the Limits of LLM-Assisted Label Expansion.
Browse all ATT&CK techniques and the vulnerabilities related to each.
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Related by attack behaviour
Vulnerabilities whose description is nearest to this one in the vector space of the CIRCL/vulnerability-attack-technique-biencoder model. This is a similarity search over the bi-encoder space (plain cosine), not a classification, and it has no measured accuracy.