Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2023-5643 is a high-severity flaw in Arm Mali GPU kernel drivers. A local, non-privileged user could trigger improper GPU memory handling and potentially write outside intended memory bounds. Business risk is highest on Android, embedded, or device fleets using affected Mali driver releases.
Executive priority
Treat as high priority for device fleets with Mali GPUs, especially managed Android or embedded systems. It is serious because kernel driver memory corruption can have full-system impact, but urgency is tempered by local access requirements and no provided evidence of active exploitation.
Technical view
The issue is a CWE-787 out-of-bounds write in Arm Bifrost, Valhall, and Arm 5th Gen GPU Architecture kernel drivers from r41p0 through r45p0. The CVSS 3.1 score is 7.8, with local attack vector, low complexity, low privileges required, and high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure depends on whether systems ship affected Mali GPU kernel driver branches r41p0 through r45p0. The bundle does not identify specific device models, operating systems, or OEM firmware packages.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or cited active exploitation. Exploitation requires local low-privileged access and depends on driver configuration plus carefully prepared system memory.
Researcher notes
The affected range is clear at the driver branch level, but product mapping is incomplete. Research should focus on driver version identification, OEM backport status, and whether shipped builds enable the configuration conditions described by the CVE.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory devices using Arm Mali Bifrost, Valhall, or Arm 5th Gen GPU drivers.
- Identify whether deployed driver versions are r41p0 through r45p0.
- Check Arm and OEM security guidance for corrected driver or firmware packages.
- Apply vendor-supplied OS, firmware, or GPU driver updates when available.
- Reduce risk from untrusted local apps on exposed device classes.
Validation and detection
- Confirm GPU architecture and Mali kernel driver version on representative assets.
- Map affected driver versions against mobile, embedded, and appliance inventories.
- Verify vendor advisories for each OEM device line before marking fixed.
- After updates, confirm the affected driver branch is no longer deployed.
- Track whether future sources add exploitation or patch details.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-787: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2023-5643 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 7.8 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H1.85.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
7.8HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Out-of-bounds Write
Out-of-bounds Write represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.