#VU104648 NULL pointer dereference in Linux kernel - CVE-2022-49228

Vulnerability identifier: #VU104648

Vulnerability risk: Low

CVSSv4.0: 4.3 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Clear]

CVE-ID: CVE-2022-49228

CWE-ID: CWE-476

Exploitation vector: Local

Exploit availability: No

Vulnerable software:
Linux kernel
Operating systems & Components / Operating system

Vendor: Linux Foundation

Description

The vulnerability allows a local user to perform a denial of service (DoS) attack.

The vulnerability exists due to NULL pointer dereference within the btf_resolve(), btf_type_needs_resolve(), btf_func_check_meta(), btf_resolve_valid() and btf_check_all_types() functions in kernel/bpf/btf.c. A local user can perform a denial of service (DoS) attack.

Mitigation
Install update from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

Linux kernel: 5.16, 5.16 rc1, 5.16 rc2, 5.16 rc3, 5.16 rc4, 5.16 rc5, 5.16 rc6, 5.16 rc8, 5.16.0, 5.16.1, 5.16.2, 5.16.3, 5.16.4, 5.16.5, 5.16.6, 5.16.7, 5.16.8, 5.16.9, 5.16.10, 5.16.11, 5.16.12, 5.16.13, 5.16.14, 5.16.15, 5.16.16, 5.16.17, 5.16.18, 5.17, 5.17 rc1, 5.17 rc2, 5.17 rc3, 5.17 rc4, 5.17 rc5, 5.17 rc6, 5.17 rc7, 5.17 rc8, 5.17 rc9, 5.17 rc12, 5.17.1, 5.18 rc1, 5.18 rc2, 5.18 rc3, 5.18 rc5, 5.18 rc6, 5.18 rc7, 5.18 rc8

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External links
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/796d5666f6422ddadc938fb888044fcc16f2dbe3
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a3bcd2110c087bc62e90fddd4a93237b049d6e68
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/d7e7b42f4f956f2c68ad8cda87d750093dbba737
https://mirrors.edge.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v5.x/ChangeLog-5.16.19
https://mirrors.edge.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v5.x/ChangeLog-5.17.2
https://mirrors.edge.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v5.x/ChangeLog-5.18

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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.