Linux: Use After Free
CVE-2024-46683 is a high-severity use after free 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 10081b0b0ed201f53e24bd92deb2e0f3c3e713d4, 730b72480e29f63fd644f5fa57c9d46109428953 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 0.21% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Update Linux to 10081b0b0ed201f53e24bd92deb2e0f3c3e713d4 or 730b72480e29f63fd644f5fa57c9d46109428953, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
- Update Linux Kernel to 6.10.8 or a later version.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | Linux | dd08ebf6c3525a7ea2186e636df064ea47281987 up to, but not including, 10081b0b0ed201f53e24bd92deb2e0f3c3e713d4; dd08ebf6c3525a7ea2186e636df064ea47281987 up to, but not including, 730b72480e29f63fd644f5fa57c9d46109428953; 6.8 | 10081b0b0ed201f53e24bd92deb2e0f3c3e713d4, 730b72480e29f63fd644f5fa57c9d46109428953 |
| Linux | Linux Kernel | 6.8 up to, but not including, 6.10.8; 6.11 | 6.10.8 |
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.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.8 | High | CNA |
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.8 | High | NVD |
Official description
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: drm/xe: prevent UAF around preempt fence The fence lock is part of the queue, therefore in the current design anything locking the fence should then also hold a ref to the queue to prevent the queue from being freed. However, currently it looks like we signal the fence and then drop the queue ref, but if something is waiting on the fence, the waiter is kicked to wake up at some later point, where upon waking up it first grabs the lock before checking the fence state. But if we have already dropped the queue ref, then the lock might already be freed as part of the queue, leading to uaf. To prevent this, move the fence lock into the fence itself so we don't run into lifetime issues. Alternative might be to have device level lock, or only release the queue in the fence release callback, however that might require pushing to another worker to avoid locking issues. References: https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/drm/xe/kernel/-/issues/2454 References: https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/drm/xe/kernel/-/issues/2342 References: https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/drm/xe/kernel/-/issues/2020 (cherry picked from commit 7116c35aacedc38be6d15bd21b2fc936eed0008b)
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Use After Free
The product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory belongs to the code that operates on the new pointer.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Choose a language that provides automatic memory management.
- When freeing pointers, be sure to set them to NULL once they are freed. However, the utilization of multiple or complex data structures may lower the usefulness of this strategy.
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: partial).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Patches and release notes
Recent Use After Free vulnerabilities
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
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