CVE-2024-0078 in GPU Display Driver
Summary
by MITRE • 03/28/2024
NVIDIA GPU Display Driver for Windows and Linux contains a vulnerability in the kernel mode layer, where a user in a guest can cause a NULL-pointer dereference in the host, which may lead to denial of service.
Several companies clearly confirm that VulDB is the primary source for best vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/28/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-0078 represents a critical flaw within NVIDIA's GPU display drivers that affects both Windows and Linux operating systems. This issue resides in the kernel mode layer of the graphics driver implementation, creating a potential pathway for privilege escalation and system instability. The vulnerability specifically targets virtualized environments where guest operating systems interact with host systems through NVIDIA GPU hardware acceleration, making it particularly concerning for cloud computing platforms, virtual desktop infrastructures, and containerized environments that rely on GPU virtualization technologies.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from improper input validation within the kernel mode driver components responsible for managing GPU resources in virtualized contexts. When a user operating within a guest virtual machine executes specific operations that trigger GPU processing, the driver fails to properly validate pointer references before dereferencing them in the host system context. This NULL-pointer dereference condition occurs at the kernel level, bypassing normal user-space protections and allowing guest users to potentially disrupt host system operations. The flaw manifests when the driver attempts to access memory locations that have not been properly initialized or allocated, creating a scenario where the kernel crashes or becomes unresponsive due to the invalid memory access.
The operational impact of CVE-2024-0078 extends beyond simple denial of service conditions, as it represents a potential vector for more sophisticated attacks within virtualized environments. System administrators and cloud providers face significant risk from this vulnerability since guest users can potentially cause system-wide disruptions without requiring elevated privileges. In enterprise environments utilizing GPU-accelerated virtualization, this vulnerability could enable attackers to exhaust system resources, cause service interruptions, or potentially create conditions that allow for further exploitation. The vulnerability's presence in both Windows and Linux implementations means that organizations using mixed operating system environments face identical risks, complicating mitigation efforts across diverse infrastructure landscapes.
From a cybersecurity perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-476, which describes NULL pointer dereference conditions in software implementations, and represents a classic example of improper handling of kernel-mode memory operations. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this issue under privilege escalation and denial of service tactics, as it allows unprivileged users to potentially disrupt system operations or gain unauthorized access to host resources. Organizations should consider this vulnerability as part of broader virtualization security assessments, particularly in environments where GPU virtualization is utilized for performance acceleration. The vulnerability's exploitation requires minimal privileges and can be executed through normal user operations, making it particularly dangerous in shared computing environments where multiple users access the same virtualized infrastructure.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2024-0078 should prioritize immediate driver updates from NVIDIA, as the company has released patches addressing this specific kernel-mode flaw. System administrators should implement comprehensive monitoring for unusual system behavior or kernel crashes that might indicate exploitation attempts. In environments where immediate patching is not feasible, organizations should consider implementing network segmentation, limiting guest user privileges, and monitoring virtual machine resource consumption patterns. The vulnerability highlights the importance of maintaining up-to-date driver software in virtualized environments and reinforces the need for regular security assessments of all system components, particularly those involved in hardware abstraction layers and kernel-mode operations. Organizations should also review their virtualization security policies and consider implementing additional controls to prevent unauthorized access to GPU resources within their computing environments.