high CVSS 7.8

CVE-2024-39480·Kernel vulnerability

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: kdb: Fix buffer overflow during tab-complete Currently, when the user attempts symbol completion with the Tab key, kdb will use strncpy() to insert the completed symbol into the command buffer. Unfortunately it passes the size of the source buffer rather than the destination to strncpy() with predictably horrible results. Most obviously if the command buffer is already full but cp, the cursor position, is in the middle of the buffer, then we will write past the end of the supplied buffer. Fix this by replacing the dubious strncpy() calls with memmove()/memcpy() calls plus explicit boundary checks to make sure we have enough space before we start moving characters around.

Severity
high
Software
Kernel
Fixed in
6.9.5
Published
2024-07-05

Affected versions

From: 6.9

Until: 6.9.5

Fixed in: 6.9.5

How to fix this CVE

Update your Linux kernel to version 6.9.5 or later to patch a buffer overflow vulnerability in the kdb debugger's tab-completion feature. This flaw could allow local privilege escalation when symbol completion is triggered with a full command buffer. Apply the kernel update immediately and reboot your system to activate the patched version.

sudo dnf update kernel kernel-devel && sudo reboot

Defensia detects this vulnerability

How to check if you are affected

  1. Run `uname -r` to check your current kernel version; if it shows 6.9.0 through 6.9.4, your system is vulnerable
  2. Check if kdb is enabled by running `cat /proc/cmdline | grep kdb` — if kdb parameter appears, the vulnerable component is active
  3. Search kernel logs for kdb-related crashes with `dmesg | grep -i kdb` or `journalctl -b | grep kdb` to detect exploitation attempts
  4. After applying the patch, verify the fix with `uname -r` to confirm kernel version is 6.9.5 or higher, then reboot if needed

FAQ

What is CVE-2024-39480?

This vulnerability is a buffer overflow in the Linux kernel's kdb debugger when users press Tab to auto-complete symbol names. The vulnerability stems from using the wrong buffer size parameter in string copy operations, allowing memory corruption when the command buffer is full.

Is CVE-2024-39480 being actively exploited?

No, there is no evidence of active exploitation in the wild, and no public exploits are available. However, the high CVSS score (7.8) and local privilege escalation potential warrant prompt patching.

What versions of Kernel are affected by CVE-2024-39480?

Linux kernel versions 6.9.0 through 6.9.4 are vulnerable. Version 6.9.5 and later contain the fix.

How do I check if my server is vulnerable to CVE-2024-39480?

Run `uname -r` to display your kernel version; if it shows a version between 6.9.0 and 6.9.4, you are vulnerable. Additionally, verify kdb is enabled with `cat /proc/cmdline | grep kdb`.

Does Defensia detect CVE-2024-39480?

Yes — Defensia's CVE advisory scanner compares installed package versions against the NVD database. If Kernel is installed on a monitored server, CVE-2024-39480 will appear in your dashboard with remediation steps.

Related Kernel CVEs

CVE-2024-42256CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: cifs: Fix server re-repick on subrequest retry When a subrequest is marked for needing retry, netfs will call cifs_prepare_write() which will make cifs repick the server for the op before renegotiating credits; it then calls cifs_issue_write() which invokes smb2_async_writev() - which re-repicks the server. If a different server is then selected, this causes the increment of server->in_flight to happen against one record and the decrement to happen against another, leading to misaccounting. Fix this by just removing the repick code in smb2_async_writev(). As this is only called from netfslib-driven code, cifs_prepare_write() should always have been called first, and so server should never be NULL and the preparatory step is repeated in the event that we do a retry. The problem manifests as a warning looking something like: WARNING: CPU: 4 PID: 72896 at fs/smb/client/smb2ops.c:97 smb2_add_credits+0x3f0/0x9e0 [cifs] ... RIP: 0010:smb2_add_credits+0x3f0/0x9e0 [cifs] ... smb2_writev_callback+0x334/0x560 [cifs] cifs_demultiplex_thread+0x77a/0x11b0 [cifs] kthread+0x187/0x1d0 ret_from_fork+0x34/0x60 ret_from_fork_asm+0x1a/0x30 Which may be triggered by a number of different xfstests running against an Azure server in multichannel mode. generic/249 seems the most repeatable, but generic/215, generic/249 and generic/308 may also show it.
CVE-2024-36031CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: keys: Fix overwrite of key expiration on instantiation The expiry time of a key is unconditionally overwritten during instantiation, defaulting to turn it permanent. This causes a problem for DNS resolution as the expiration set by user-space is overwritten to TIME64_MAX, disabling further DNS updates. Fix this by restoring the condition that key_set_expiry is only called when the pre-parser sets a specific expiry.
CVE-2024-38623CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: fs/ntfs3: Use variable length array instead of fixed size Should fix smatch warning: ntfs_set_label() error: __builtin_memcpy() 'uni->name' too small (20 vs 256)
CVE-2024-38612CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ipv6: sr: fix invalid unregister error path The error path of seg6_init() is wrong in case CONFIG_IPV6_SEG6_LWTUNNEL is not defined. In that case if seg6_hmac_init() fails, the genl_unregister_family() isn't called. This issue exist since commit 46738b1317e1 ("ipv6: sr: add option to control lwtunnel support"), and commit 5559cea2d5aa ("ipv6: sr: fix possible use-after-free and null-ptr-deref") replaced unregister_pernet_subsys() with genl_unregister_family() in this error path.
CVE-2021-47548CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ethernet: hisilicon: hns: hns_dsaf_misc: fix a possible array overflow in hns_dsaf_ge_srst_by_port() The if statement: if (port >= DSAF_GE_NUM) return; limits the value of port less than DSAF_GE_NUM (i.e., 8). However, if the value of port is 6 or 7, an array overflow could occur: port_rst_off = dsaf_dev->mac_cb[port]->port_rst_off; because the length of dsaf_dev->mac_cb is DSAF_MAX_PORT_NUM (i.e., 6). To fix this possible array overflow, we first check port and if it is greater than or equal to DSAF_MAX_PORT_NUM, the function returns.

References

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