Linux Kernel up to 6.6.1 padata.c padata_free_shell use after free

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 5.10.200/5.15.138/6.1.62/6.5.11/6.6.1. It has been rated as critical. This affects the function padata_free_shell of the file padata.c. The manipulation leads to use after free. This vulnerability is referenced as CVE-2023-52854. No exploit is available. Upgrading the affected component is advised.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 5.10.200/5.15.138/6.1.62/6.5.11/6.6.1 and classified as critical. This issue affects the function padata_free_shell of the file padata.c. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a use after free vulnerability. Using CWE to declare the problem leads to CWE-416. Referencing memory after it has been freed can cause a program to crash, use unexpected values, or execute code. Impacted is confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: padata: Fix refcnt handling in padata_free_shell() In a high-load arm64 environment, the pcrypt_aead01 test in LTP can lead to system UAF (Use-After-Free) issues. Due to the lengthy analysis of the pcrypt_aead01 function call, I'll describe the problem scenario using a simplified model: Suppose there's a user of padata named `user_function` that adheres to the padata requirement of calling `padata_free_shell` after `serial()` has been invoked, as demonstrated in the following code: ```c struct request { struct padata_priv padata; struct completion *done; }; void parallel(struct padata_priv *padata) { do_something(); } void serial(struct padata_priv *padata) { struct request *request = container_of(padata, struct request, padata); complete(request->done); } void user_function() { DECLARE_COMPLETION(done) padata->parallel = parallel; padata->serial = serial; padata_do_parallel(); wait_for_completion(&done); padata_free_shell(); } ``` In the corresponding padata.c file, there's the following code: ```c static void padata_serial_worker(struct work_struct *serial_work) { ... cnt = 0; while (!list_empty(&local_list)) { ... padata->serial(padata); cnt++; } local_bh_enable(); if (refcount_sub_and_test(cnt, &pd->refcnt)) padata_free_pd(pd); } ``` Because of the high system load and the accumulation of unexecuted softirq at this moment, `local_bh_enable()` in padata takes longer to execute than usual. Subsequently, when accessing `pd->refcnt`, `pd` has already been released by `padata_free_shell()`, resulting in a UAF issue with `pd->refcnt`. The fix is straightforward: add `refcount_dec_and_test` before calling `padata_free_pd` in `padata_free_shell`.

The advisory is shared at git.kernel.org. The identification of this vulnerability is CVE-2023-52854 since 05/21/2024. The exploitation is known to be easy. Technical details are known, but no exploit is available. The price for an exploit might be around USD $0-$5k at the moment (estimation calculated on 10/02/2024).

The vulnerability scanner Nessus provides a plugin with the ID 207959 (SUSE SLES15 Security Update : kernel (SUSE-SU-2024:3499-1)), which helps to determine the existence of the flaw in a target environment.

Upgrading to version 5.10.201, 5.15.139, 6.1.63, 6.5.12 or 6.6.2 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch 41aad9d69539/0dd34a7ad395/c7c26d0ef5d2/1e901bcb8af1/1734a79e9519/7ddc21e317b3 is able to eliminate this problem. The bugfix is ready for download at git.kernel.org. The best possible mitigation is suggested to be upgrading to the latest version.

The vulnerability is also documented in the vulnerability database at Tenable (207959). If you want to get the best quality for vulnerability data then you always have to consider VulDB.

Productinfo

Type

• Operating System

Vendor

• Linux

Name

• Kernel

Version

• 5.0
• 5.1
• 5.2
• 5.3
• 5.4
• 5.5
• 5.6
• 5.7
• 5.8
• 5.9
• 5.10.200
• 5.15.138
• 6.1.0
• 6.1.1
• 6.1.2
• 6.1.3
• 6.1.4
• 6.1.5
• 6.1.6
• 6.1.7
• 6.1.8
• 6.1.9
• 6.1.10
• 6.1.11
• 6.1.12
• 6.1.13
• 6.1.14
• 6.1.15
• 6.1.16
• 6.1.17
• 6.1.18
• 6.1.19
• 6.1.20
• 6.1.21
• 6.1.22
• 6.1.23
• 6.1.24
• 6.1.25
• 6.1.26
• 6.1.27
• 6.1.28
• 6.1.29
• 6.1.30
• 6.1.31
• 6.1.32
• 6.1.33
• 6.1.34
• 6.1.35
• 6.1.36
• 6.1.37
• 6.1.38
• 6.1.39
• 6.1.40
• 6.1.41
• 6.1.42
• 6.1.43
• 6.1.44
• 6.1.45
• 6.1.46
• 6.1.47
• 6.1.48
• 6.1.49
• 6.1.50
• 6.1.51
• 6.1.52
• 6.1.53
• 6.1.54
• 6.1.55
• 6.1.56
• 6.1.57
• 6.1.58
• 6.1.59
• 6.1.60
• 6.1.61
• 6.1.62
• 6.5.0
• 6.5.1
• 6.5.2
• 6.5.3
• 6.5.4
• 6.5.5
• 6.5.6
• 6.5.7
• 6.5.8
• 6.5.9
• 6.5.10
• 6.5.11
• 6.6.0
• 6.6.1

License

• open-source

Website

• Vendor: https://www.kernel.org/

CPE 2.3info

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CPE 2.2info

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Entryinfo

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