CyberSecBulletin
CVE-2023-52868NVD status: Analyzed

Linux: Out-of-bounds Write

Published Updated By the CyberSecBulletin desk

CVE-2023-52868 is a high-severity out-of-bounds write vulnerability in Linux, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. The record lists versions b55f0a9f865be75ca1019aad331f3225f7b50ce8, 6ad1bf47fbe5750c4d5d8e41337665e193e2c521, 3091ab943dfc7b2578599b0fe203350286fab5bb as the first without the flaw, so updating Linux to one of those releases or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.24% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.

Next patch cycle

High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.

What to do

  1. Update Linux to b55f0a9f865be75ca1019aad331f3225f7b50ce8 or 6ad1bf47fbe5750c4d5d8e41337665e193e2c521 or 3091ab943dfc7b2578599b0fe203350286fab5bb or 3f795fb35c2d8a637efe76b4518216c9319b998c, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
  2. Update Linux Kernel to 4.14.330 or 4.19.299 or 5.4.261 or 5.10.201, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.

Affected products and versions

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed in
LinuxLinux203d3d4aa482339b4816f131f713e1b8ee37f6dd up to, but not including, b55f0a9f865be75ca1019aad331f3225f7b50ce8; 203d3d4aa482339b4816f131f713e1b8ee37f6dd up to, but not including, 6ad1bf47fbe5750c4d5d8e41337665e193e2c521; 203d3d4aa482339b4816f131f713e1b8ee37f6dd up to, but not including, 3091ab943dfc7b2578599b0fe203350286fab5bb; 203d3d4aa482339b4816f131f713e1b8ee37f6dd up to, but not including, 3f795fb35c2d8a637efe76b4518216c9319b998c; 203d3d4aa482339b4816f131f713e1b8ee37f6dd up to, but not including, 3a8f4e58e1ee707b4f46a1000b40b86ea3dd509c; 203d3d4aa482339b4816f131f713e1b8ee37f6dd up to, but not including, 77ff34a56b695e228e6daf30ee30be747973d6e8; 203d3d4aa482339b4816f131f713e1b8ee37f6dd up to, but not including, 0f6b3be28c4d62ef6498133959c72266629bea97; 203d3d4aa482339b4816f131f713e1b8ee37f6dd up to, but not including, edbd6bbe40ac524a8f2273ffacc53edf14f3c686; and 2 more rangesb55f0a9f865be75ca1019aad331f3225f7b50ce8, 6ad1bf47fbe5750c4d5d8e41337665e193e2c521, 3091ab943dfc7b2578599b0fe203350286fab5bb, 3f795fb35c2d8a637efe76b4518216c9319b998c, 3a8f4e58e1ee707b4f46a1000b40b86ea3dd509c, 77ff34a56b695e228e6daf30ee30be747973d6e8
LinuxLinux Kernel2.6.25 up to, but not including, 4.14.330; 4.15 up to, but not including, 4.19.299; 4.20 up to, but not including, 5.4.261; 5.5 up to, but not including, 5.10.201; 5.11 up to, but not including, 5.15.139; 5.16 up to, but not including, 6.1.63; 6.2 up to, but not including, 6.5.12; 6.6 up to, but not including, 6.6.24.14.330, 4.19.299, 5.4.261, 5.10.201, 5.15.139, 6.1.63

Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.

How the severity score breaks down

Attack vector
LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
Attack complexity
LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
Privileges required
LowA basic user account is enough.
User interaction
NoneNo action by a victim is required.
Scope
UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
Confidentiality
HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
Integrity
HighData or code can be modified at will.
Availability
HighThe component can be taken down completely.

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by NVD.

Official description

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: thermal: core: prevent potential string overflow The dev->id value comes from ida_alloc() so it's a number between zero and INT_MAX. If it's too high then these sprintf()s will overflow.

Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.

The underlying weakness: Out-of-bounds Write

The product writes data past the end, or before the beginning, of the intended buffer.

How developers prevent this class of flaw

  • Use a language that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid. For example, many languages that perform their own memory management, such as Java and Perl, are not subject to buffer overflows. Other languages, such as Ada and C#, typically provide overflow protection, but the protection can be disabled by the programmer. Be wary that a language's interface to native code may still be subject to overflows, even if the language itself is theoretically safe.
  • Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid. Examples include the Safe C String Library (SafeStr) by Messier and Viega, and the Strsafe.h library from Microsoft. These libraries provide safer versions of overflow-prone string-handling functions.
  • Use automatic buffer overflow detection mechanisms that are offered by certain compilers or compiler extensions. Examples include: the Microsoft Visual Studio /GS flag, Fedora/Red Hat FORTIFY_SOURCE GCC flag, StackGuard, and ProPolice, which provide various mechanisms including canary-based detection and range/index checking. D3-SFCV (Stack Frame Canary Validation) from D3FEND discusses canary-based detection in detail.

More Out-of-bounds Write vulnerabilities (CWE-787)

Timeline

  1. CVE record published.
  2. CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: partial).
  3. Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).

References

Recent Out-of-bounds Write vulnerabilities

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