Privilege escalation in Linux kernel watch_queue

1) Out-of-bounds write

EUVDB-ID: #VU61772

Risk: Low

CVSSv4.0: 8.5 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:A/U:Clear]

CVE-ID: CVE-2022-0995

CWE-ID: CWE-787 - Out-of-bounds write

Exploit availability: Yes

Description

The vulnerability allows a local user to escalate privileges on the system.

The vulnerability exists due to a boundary error within the Linux kernel’s watch_queue event notification subsystem. A local user can run a specially crafted program to trigger an out-of-bounds write and execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges.

Mitigation

Install updates from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

Linux kernel: 5.17 rc1 - 5.17 rc7

CPE2.3

• cpe:2.3:o:linux_foundation:linux_kernel:5.17:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:linux_foundation:linux_kernel:5.17:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:linux_foundation:linux_kernel:5.17:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:linux_foundation:linux_kernel:5.17:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:linux_foundation:linux_kernel:5.17:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:linux_foundation:linux_kernel:5.17:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:o:linux_foundation:linux_kernel:5.17:rc7:*:*:*:*:*:*

External links

https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2063786
https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git/commit/?id=93ce93587d36493f2f86921fa79921b3cba63fbb

Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

No. This vulnerability can be exploited locally. The attacker should have authentication credentials and successfully authenticate on the system.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability. However, a fully functional exploit for this vulnerability is available.