dbcve.org
Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2010-2495

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2010-09-08
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.6.34 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
The pppol2tp_xmit function in drivers/net/pppol2tp.c in the L2TP implementation in the Linux kernel before 2.6.34 does not properly validate certain values associated with an interface, which allows attackers to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference and OOPS) or possibly have unspecified other impact via vectors related to a routing change.

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 · high confidence

The pppol2tp_xmit function in drivers/net/pppol2tp.c in the Linux kernel L2TP implementation before 2.6.34 fails to properly validate interface-associated values, leading to NULL pointer dereference and kernel OOPS when processing certain routing change events.

MitigationUpgrade Linux kernel to version 2.6.34 or later to obtain the validation fix; until then, consider disabling L2TP protocols or implementing network access controls to reduce attack surface.

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 data
Linux KernelOperating system
Affected:< 2.6.34
Ubuntu LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 6.06= 8.04= 9.04= 9.10= 10.04= 10.10
Suse Linux Enterprise DesktopOperating system
Affected:= 11
Suse Linux Enterprise High Availability ExtensionOperating system
Affected:= 11
Suse Linux Enterprise ServerOperating system
Affected:= 11

CVSS 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
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check the running kernel version
    Run 'uname -r' or 'cat /proc/version' to see the kernel version number
    Affected if The version is lower than 2.6.34 (e.g., 2.6.x where x < 34, or any version string starting with 2.4.x)
  2. Verify L2TP kernel modules are loaded
    Run 'lsmod | grep -E "(pppol2tp|l2tp|ppp)"' to see if L2TP-related modules are loaded
    Affected if Any of these modules are loaded, making the L2TP code path active in the kernel
  3. Check for active L2TP interfaces
    Run 'ip l2tp show' or check 'ifconfig -a' or 'ip link' for any L2TP-type interfaces (often named like l2tpxxx)
    Affected if L2TP interfaces exist and are configured, indicating the vulnerable code path could be exercised
  4. Identify the pppol2tp.c source or module
    Check /sys/module/pppol2tp/version or examine the kernel source file drivers/net/pppol2tp.c if accessible; compare the file date or version against the 2.6.34 release
    Affected if The source file or module version predates the 2.6.34 kernel release

The system is affected if it runs a kernel version earlier than 2.6.34 AND has L2TP (pppol2tp) modules loaded or L2TP interfaces configured, as only then would the vulnerable pppol2tp_xmit code path be executed.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 2.6.34 or later
Fixed in 2.6.34
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Linux kernel to version 2.6.34 or later to obtain the validation fix; until then, consider disabling L2TP protocols or implementing network access controls to reduce attack surface.

Recommended fix High confidence

Linux Kernel 2.6.34 or later; for Ubuntu: apply vendor security updates; for SUSE: apply vendor security patches

  1. Check the current running kernel version using 'uname -r'
  2. For upstream Linux: Upgrade the Linux kernel to version 2.6.34 or later by obtaining the kernel package from kernel.org or your distribution's package repository
  3. For Ubuntu systems: Run 'sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade' or 'sudo apt-get dist-upgrade' to apply available kernel security updates, or manually install linux-image-2.6.34 or later
  4. For SUSE systems: Run 'sudo zypper patch' or 'sudo zypper update' to apply available security patches, or manually install kernel-default version 2.6.34 or later
  5. After kernel upgrade, reboot the system using 'sudo reboot' to load the fixed kernel
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require rebuilding third-party kernel modules (like proprietary drivers); ensure compatibility with the new kernel version before rebooting

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Linux Kernel Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2010-2495 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2010-2495 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data