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Bifrost Gpu Kernel DriverApplication · Arm

CVE-2022-28348

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-05-19
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
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
Arm Mali GPU Kernel Driver (Midgard r4p0 through r31p0, Bifrost r0p0 through r36p0 before r37p0, and Valhall r19p0 through r36p0 before r37p0) allows improper GPU memory operations to reach a use-after-free situation.

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 Arm Mali GPU Kernel Driver contains a use-after-free vulnerability where improper GPU memory operations allow memory to be accessed after being freed. This affects Midgard r4p0-r31p0, Bifrost r0p0-r36p0 before r37p0, and Valhall r19p0-r36p0 before r37p0. The flaw exists in kernel-mode driver code, making privilege escalation straightforward.

MitigationUpdate the Mali GPU driver to r37p0 or later versions. For Android devices, this requires applying the vendor's monthly security patch; for other products using Mali GPUs, apply the driver update from Arm's official release notes.

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
Bifrost Gpu Kernel DriverApplication
Affected:>= r0p0, <= r36p0
Midgard Gpu Kernel DriverApplication
Affected:>= r4p0, <= r31p0
Valhall Gpu Kernel DriverApplication
Affected:>= r19p0, <= r36p0

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
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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. Identify if the system uses an Arm Mali GPU
    Check /sys/class/misc/ for mali0 device, or run 'lspci | grep -i gpu' for integrated GPUs, or check /sys/devices/ for mali directories
    Affected if No Mali GPU found means not affected
  2. Determine the Mali GPU kernel driver version
    Check the driver module version: run 'modinfo mali' or 'cat /sys/module/mali/version' if the module is loaded, or check /sys/module/mali/version
    Affected if Unable to determine version means cannot confirm vulnerability status
  3. Identify the GPU architecture family (Midgard, Bifrost, or Valhall)
    Run 'dmesg | grep -i mali' or check /sys/module/mali/parameters/ for architecture information, or check vendor-specific paths like /sys/class/misc/mali0/device/uevent
    Affected if No Mali architecture identifier found - verify GPU is actually Mali-based
  4. Compare installed driver version against affected ranges
    Use the version from step 2: Bifrost: r0p0 to r36p0 (vulnerable, r37p0+ fixed), Midgard: r4p0 to r31p0 (vulnerable), Valhall: r19p0 to r36p0 (vulnerable, r37p0+ fixed)
    Affected if Version falls within these ranges: Bifrost r0p0-r36p0, Midgard r4p0-r31p0, or Valhall r19p0-r36p0 - system is affected

If the system has an Arm Mali GPU with kernel driver version in the affected ranges (Bifrost r0p0-r36p0, Midgard r4p0-r31p0, or Valhall r19p0-r36p0), the environment is vulnerable to this use-after-free flaw.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update the Mali GPU driver to r37p0 or later versions. For Android devices, this requires applying the vendor's monthly security patch; for other products using Mali GPUs, apply the driver update from Arm's official release notes.

Recommended fix High confidence

r37p0 or later for Bifrost and Valhall drivers; equivalent fixed release for Midgard

  1. Identify the current Arm Mali GPU Kernel Driver version installed on the affected system
  2. Contact the device manufacturer or OS vendor (e.g., Android device OEM, Linux distribution) to obtain the updated driver version r37p0 or later
  3. Apply the vendor-provided security update containing the fixed Mali GPU driver
  4. Reboot the system to ensure the new kernel driver is loaded
  5. Verify the driver version has been updated to r37p0 or newer using appropriate system tools (e.g., /proc/gpuinfo on Android, or vendor-specific diagnostic tools)

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

Fix this in Bifrost Gpu Kernel Driver Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
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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-2022-28348 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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