Privilege escalation in Arm Mali GPU Kernel Drivers

1) Use-after-free

EUVDB-ID: #VU79503

Risk: High

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:Amber]

CVE-ID: CVE-2023-4211

CWE-ID: CWE-416 - Use After Free

Exploit availability: No

Description

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

The vulnerability exists due to a use-after-free error within Mali GPU Kernel Driver. A local application can trigger memory corruption and execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges.

Note, the vulnerability is being actively exploited in the wild.

Mitigation

Install update from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

Midgard GPU Kernel Driver: r12p0 - r32p0

Arm 5th Gen GPU Architecture Kernel Driver: r41p0 - r42p0

Valhall GPU Kernel Driver: All versions

Bifrost GPU Kernel Driver: All versions

CPE2.3

• cpe:2.3:h:arm:midgard_gpu_kernel_driver:r12p0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:h:arm:midgard_gpu_kernel_driver:r29p0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:h:arm:midgard_gpu_kernel_driver:r30p0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:h:arm:arms_gpu_architecture_gen5_kernel_driver:r41p0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:h:arm:arms_gpu_architecture_gen5_kernel_driver:r42p0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:h:arm:valhall_gpu_kernel_driver:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
• cpe:2.3:h:arm:bifrost_gpu_kernel_driver:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

External links

https://developer.arm.com/Arm%20Security%20Center/Mali%20GPU%20Driver%20Vulnerabilities#CVE-2023-4211

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?

Yes. This vulnerability is being exploited in the wild.