Vulnerability identifier: #VU8116

Vulnerability risk: Low

CVSSv3.1: 5.7 [CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:N/A:H/E:U/RL:O/RC:C]

CVE-ID: CVE-2015-8970

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 attacker to cause DoS condition on the target system.

The weakness exists due to crypto/algif_skcipher.c in the Linux kernel does not verify that a setkey operation has been performed on an AF_ALG socket before an accept system call is processed. A local attacker can provide a specially crafted application that does not supply a key, related to the lrw_crypt function in crypto/lrw.c., trigger NULL pointer dereference and cause the system to crash.

Successful exploitation of the vulnerability results in denial of service.

Mitigation
Update to version 4.5.

Vulnerable software versions

Linux kernel: 4.0.1 - 4.0.9, 4.1.1 - 4.1.43, 4.2.0 - 4.2.8, 4.3.1 - 4.3.6, 4.4.0 - 4.4.86

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External links
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2016/11/04/3

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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.