#VU90597 NULL pointer dereference in Linux kernel - CVE-2024-26738

Vulnerability identifier: #VU90597

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-2024-26738

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 init_phb_dynamic() and remove_phb_dynamic() functions in arch/powerpc/platforms/pseries/pci_dlpar.c, within the spapr_tce_iommu_probe_device(), ppc_iommu_register_device() and spapr_tce_setup_phb_iommus_initcall() functions in arch/powerpc/kernel/iommu.c. A local user can perform a denial of service (DoS) attack.

Mitigation
Install update from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

Linux kernel: 6.6, 6.6 rc1, 6.6 rc2, 6.6 rc3, 6.6 rc4, 6.6 rc5, 6.6 rc6, 6.6.1, 6.6.2, 6.6.3, 6.6.4, 6.6.5, 6.6.6, 6.6.7, 6.6.8, 6.6.9, 6.6.10, 6.6.11, 6.6.12, 6.6.13, 6.6.14, 6.6.15, 6.6.16, 6.6.17, 6.6.18, 6.7, 6.7 rc1, 6.7 rc2, 6.7 rc3, 6.7 rc5, 6.7 rc6, 6.7 rc7, 6.7.1, 6.7.2, 6.7.3, 6.7.4, 6.7.5, 6.7.6, 6.8 rc1, 6.8 rc2, 6.8 rc5

---

External links
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/b8315b2e25b4e68e42fcb74630f824b9a5067765
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/46e36ebd5e00a148b67ed77c1d31675996f77c25
https://git.kernel.org/stable/c/a5c57fd2e9bd1c8ea8613a8f94fd0be5eccbf321
https://mirrors.edge.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v6.x/ChangeLog-6.6.19
https://mirrors.edge.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v6.x/ChangeLog-6.7.7
https://mirrors.edge.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v6.x/ChangeLog-6.8

---

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.