CVE-2008-0731
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedThe Linux kernel before 2.6.18.8-0.8 in SUSE openSUSE 10.2 does not properly handle failure of an AppArmor change_hat system call, which might allow attackers to trigger the unconfining of an apparmored task.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceIn AppArmor (a Linux security module), the change_hat system call is used to temporarily switch a confined task to a different security context (hat). The vulnerability exists because when this change_hat call fails, AppArmor does not properly handle the error condition, potentially leaving the task in an unconfined or improperly confined state. This allows an attacker to potentially bypass AppArmor restrictions and execute code outside the intended security profile.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE dataall versionsCVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Partial
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Verify AppArmor is loadedCheck if the AppArmor kernel module is loaded by examining /sys/kernel/security/apparmor/profiles or running 'aa-status' if availableAffected if AppArmor module is loaded and profiles are active - the vulnerability affects the change_hat system call used within confined profiles
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Determine AppArmor package versionQuery the installed AppArmor package version using the system's package manager (e.g., rpm -qa | grep apparmor, dpkg -l | grep apparmor, or zypper se apparmor)Affected if Any version of Novell Apparmor is installed - the advisory states all versions are affected
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Confirm kernel versionRun 'uname -r' to check the running kernel version and compare against the patched range mentioned in vendor guidance (2.6.18.8-0.8 and later for SUSE/openSUSE)Affected if Kernel version is older than the patched version for your distribution
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Identify active AppArmor profilesList loaded profiles using 'cat /sys/kernel/security/apparmor/profiles' or 'aa-status --loaded' to see which security contexts are in useAffected if Profiles are actively confining tasks - the vulnerability triggers when change_hat fails within a confined task, potentially leaving it improperly confined
A system is affected if AppArmor is loaded with active profiles and the installed AppArmor version or kernel version falls below the patched versions for the distribution in use.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataUpgrade the Linux kernel to version 2.6.18.8-0.8 or later for affected SUSE openSUSE 10.2 systems. For systems that cannot be upgraded, apply vendor-supplied security patches and consider migrating to a supported Linux distribution as openSUSE 10.2 is end-of-life.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2008-0731 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2008-0731 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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