Linux Kernel up to 6.6.34/6.9.5 net/ethtool/ioctl.c ethtool_get_phy_stats_ethtool null pointer dereference

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability classified as critical has been found in Linux Kernel up to 6.6.34/6.9.5. Affected is the function ethtool_get_phy_stats_ethtool of the file net/ethtool/ioctl.c. Performing a manipulation results in null pointer dereference. This vulnerability is reported as CVE-2024-40928. No exploit exists. It is recommended to upgrade the affected component.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability was found in Linux Kernel up to 6.6.34/6.9.5. It has been classified as critical. This affects the function ethtool_get_phy_stats_ethtool of the file net/ethtool/ioctl.c. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a null pointer dereference vulnerability. CWE is classifying the issue as CWE-476. A NULL pointer dereference occurs when the application dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid, but is NULL, typically causing a crash or exit. This is going to have an impact on availability. The summary by CVE is:

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: ethtool: fix the error condition in ethtool_get_phy_stats_ethtool() Clang static checker (scan-build) warning: net/ethtool/ioctl.c:line 2233, column 2 Called function pointer is null (null dereference). Return '-EOPNOTSUPP' when 'ops->get_ethtool_phy_stats' is NULL to fix this typo error.

It is possible to read the advisory at git.kernel.org. This vulnerability is uniquely identified as CVE-2024-40928 since 07/12/2024. Technical details of the vulnerability are known, but there is no available exploit.

The vulnerability scanner Nessus provides a plugin with the ID 304560 (Oracle Linux 8 / 9 : Unbreakable Enterprise kernel (ELSA-2026-50171)), which helps to determine the existence of the flaw in a target environment.

Upgrading to version 6.6.35 or 6.9.6 eliminates this vulnerability. Applying the patch 6548d543a274/92196be82a4e/0dcc53abf58d 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 (304560). Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.

Productinfo

Type

• Operating System

Vendor

• Linux

Name

• Kernel

Version

• 6.6.0
• 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
• 6.6.19
• 6.6.20
• 6.6.21
• 6.6.22
• 6.6.23
• 6.6.24
• 6.6.25
• 6.6.26
• 6.6.27
• 6.6.28
• 6.6.29
• 6.6.30
• 6.6.31
• 6.6.32
• 6.6.33
• 6.6.34
• 6.9.0
• 6.9.1
• 6.9.2
• 6.9.3
• 6.9.4
• 6.9.5

License

• open-source

Website

• Vendor: https://www.kernel.org/

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