medium CVSS 6.3

CVE-2024-42161·Kernel vulnerability

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: bpf: Avoid uninitialized value in BPF_CORE_READ_BITFIELD [Changes from V1: - Use a default branch in the switch statement to initialize `val'.] GCC warns that `val' may be used uninitialized in the BPF_CRE_READ_BITFIELD macro, defined in bpf_core_read.h as: [...] unsigned long long val; \ [...] \ switch (__CORE_RELO(s, field, BYTE_SIZE)) { \ case 1: val = *(const unsigned char *)p; break; \ case 2: val = *(const unsigned short *)p; break; \ case 4: val = *(const unsigned int *)p; break; \ case 8: val = *(const unsigned long long *)p; break; \ } \ [...] val; \ } \ This patch adds a default entry in the switch statement that sets `val' to zero in order to avoid the warning, and random values to be used in case __builtin_preserve_field_info returns unexpected values for BPF_FIELD_BYTE_SIZE. Tested in bpf-next master. No regressions.

Severity: medium
Software: Kernel
Fixed in: 6.9.9
Published: 2024-07-30

Affected versions

From: 6.7

Until: 6.9.9

Fixed in: 6.9.9

How to fix this CVE

Update your Linux kernel to version 6.9.9 or later to resolve this uninitialized variable vulnerability in the BPF_CORE_READ_BITFIELD macro. This fix prevents potential use of uninitialized memory values that could lead to information disclosure or system instability in eBPF programs. Apply the patch immediately if your systems are running kernel versions 6.7 through 6.9.8.

sudo dnf update kernel kernel-devel

Defensia detects this vulnerability

How to check if you are affected

Check your kernel version: uname -r | grep -E '^(6\.[789]|6\.9\.[0-8])'
Verify the vulnerable BPF_CORE_READ_BITFIELD macro is in use: grep -r 'BPF_CORE_READ_BITFIELD' /usr/include/bpf/ 2>/dev/null || echo 'BPF headers not found'
Search for eBPF program loading attempts in system logs: journalctl -u systemd-bpfd -n 1000 2>/dev/null || dmesg | grep -i 'bpf'
Confirm patch installation by checking if kernel version is 6.9.9 or later: uname -r | awk -F. '{if ($1==6 && $2==9 && $3>=9) print "PATCHED"; else print "VULNERABLE"}'

FAQ

What is CVE-2024-42161?

CVE-2024-42161 is a medium-severity vulnerability in the Linux kernel where the BPF_CORE_READ_BITFIELD macro could use uninitialized memory values due to missing default handling in a switch statement. This can result in information disclosure or unpredictable behavior in eBPF programs when the macro receives unexpected byte size values.

Is CVE-2024-42161 being actively exploited?

No, CVE-2024-42161 is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog and has no publicly available exploits. However, it should still be patched to prevent potential future exploitation and to ensure eBPF program stability.

What versions of Kernel are affected by CVE-2024-42161?

Linux kernel versions 6.7 through 6.9.8 are affected. The vulnerability was resolved in kernel 6.9.9 and later stable releases.

How do I check if my server is vulnerable to CVE-2024-42161?

Run 'uname -r' to display your kernel version. If it shows a version between 6.7 and 6.9.8 (inclusive), your system is vulnerable. For example, if you see '6.9.5-generic', you need to update.

Does Defensia detect CVE-2024-42161?

Yes — Defensia's CVE advisory scanner compares installed package versions against the NVD database. If the Linux kernel is installed on a monitored server, CVE-2024-42161 will appear in your dashboard with remediation steps.

Related Kernel CVEs

CVE-2026-100075CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: RDMA/srpt: Fix srpt_alloc_rw_ctxs() unwind counters When srpt_alloc_rw_ctxs() fails partway through a multi-buffer indirect descriptor, the unwind path destroys RDMA contexts but leaves stale n_rw_ctx and n_rdma values (and a dangling rw_ctxs pointer). Later sq_wr_avail accounting in srpt_queue_response() or srpt_write_pending() can then subtract the wrong number of send queue credits. Reset the counters and clear rw_ctxs after freeing the heap allocation before returning an error.

CVE-2026-52986CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: netfilter: nf_conntrack_sip: don't use simple_strtoul Replace unsafe port parsing in epaddr_len(), ct_sip_parse_header_uri(), and ct_sip_parse_request() with a new sip_parse_port() helper that validates each digit against the buffer limit, eliminating the use of simple_strtoul() which assumes NUL-terminated strings. The previous code dereferenced pointers without bounds checks after sip_parse_addr() and relied on simple_strtoul() on non-NUL-terminated skb data. A port that reaches the buffer limit without a trailing character is also rejected as malformed. Also get rid of all simple_strtoul() usage in conntrack, prefer a stricter version instead. There are intentional changes: - Bail out if number is > UINT_MAX and indicate a failure, same for too long sequences. While we do accept 05535 as port 5535, we will not accept e.g. 'sip:10.0.0.1:005060'. While its syntactically valid under RFC 3261, we should restrict this to not waste cycles when presented with malformed packets with 64k '0' characters. - Force base 10 in ct_sip_parse_numerical_param(). This is used to fetch 'expire=' and 'rports='; both are expected to use base-10. - In nf_nat_sip.c, only accept the parsed value if its within the 1k-64k range. - epaddr_len now returns 0 if the port is invalid, as it already does for invalid ip addresses. This is intentional. nf_conntrack_sip performs lots of guesswork to find the right parts of the message to parse. Being stricter could break existing setups. Connection tracking helpers are designed to allow traffic to pass, not to block it. Based on an earlier patch from Jenny Guanni Qu <qguanni@gmail.com>.

CVE-2026-63993CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: vxlan: do not reuse cached ip_hdr() value after skb_tunnel_check_pmtu() skb_tunnel_check_pmtu() can change skb->head. Reusing old_iph afer skb_tunnel_check_pmtu() can cause an UAF. Use instead ip_hdr(skb) as done in drivers/net/bareudp.c and drivers/net/geneve.c. Found by Sashiko.

CVE-2026-64046CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: tls: prevent chain-after-chain in plain text SG Sashiko points out that if end = 0 (start != 0) the current code will create a chain link to content type right after the wrap link: This would create a chain where the wrap link points directly to another chain link. The scatterlist API sg_next iterator does not recursively resolve consecutive chain links. meaning this is illegal input to crypto. The wrapping link is unnecessary if end = 0. end is the entry after the last one used so end = 0 means there's nothing pushed after the wrap: end start i v v v [ ]...[ ][ d ][ d ][ d ][ d ][rsv for wrap] Skip the wrapping in this case. TLS 1.3 can use the "wrapping slot" for it's chaining if end = 0. This avoids the chain-after-chain. Move the wrap chaining before marking END and chaining off content type, that feels like more logical ordering to me, but should not matter from functional perspective.

CVE-2026-64055CVSS 9.8In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: ethernet: cortina: Carry over frag counter The gmac_rx() NAPI poll function assembles packets in an SKB from a ring buffer. If the ring buffer gets completely emptied during a poll cycle, we exit gmac_rx(), but the packet is not yet completely assembled in the SKB, yet the fragment counter frag_nr is reset to zero on the next invocation. Solve this by making the RX fragment counter a part of the port struct, and carry it over between invocations. Reset the fragment counter only right after calling napi_gro_frags(), on error (after calling napi_free_frags()) or if stopping the port. Reset it in some place where not strictly necessary just to emphasize what is going on. This was found by Sashiko during normal patch review.

References

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