#VU28400 Buffer overflow in Linux kernel - CVE-2019-12817

Vulnerability identifier: #VU28400

Vulnerability risk: Low

CVSSv4.0: 4.4 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Clear]

CVE-ID: CVE-2019-12817

CWE-ID: CWE-119

Exploitation vector: Local

Exploit availability: No

Vulnerable software:
Linux kernel
Operating systems & Components / Operating system

Vendor: Linux Foundation

Description

The vulnerability allows a local authenticated user to execute arbitrary code.

arch/powerpc/mm/mmu_context_book3s64.c in the Linux kernel before 5.1.15 for powerpc has a bug where unrelated processes may be able to read/write to one another's virtual memory under certain conditions via an mmap above 512 TB. Only a subset of powerpc systems are affected.

Mitigation
Install update from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

Linux kernel: 5.0 - 5.0.21, 5.1 rc1 - 5.1.21, 5.2 - 5.2.21

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External links
https://cdn.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v5.x/ChangeLog-5.2
https://cdn.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/v5.x/ChangeLog-5.3

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Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

No. This vulnerability can be exploited locally. The attacker should have authentication credentials and successfully authenticate on the system.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability.