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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2022-48838

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-07-16
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 4.9.308 / 4.14.273 or later.
See remediation →
57/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click Patch available

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
In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: usb: gadget: Fix use-after-free bug by not setting udc->dev.driver The syzbot fuzzer found a use-after-free bug: BUG: KASAN: use-after-free in dev_uevent+0x712/0x780 drivers/base/core.c:2320 Read of size 8 at addr ffff88802b934098 by task udevd/3689 CPU: 2 PID: 3689 Comm: udevd Not tainted 5.17.0-rc4-syzkaller-00229-g4f12b742eb2b #0 Hardware name: QEMU Standard PC (Q35 + ICH9, 2009), BIOS 1.14.0-2 04/01/2014 Call Trace: <TASK> __dump_stack lib/dump_stack.c:88 [inline] dump_stack_lvl+0xcd/0x134 lib/dump_stack.c:106 print_address_description.constprop.0.cold+0x8d/0x303 mm/kasan/report.c:255 __kasan_report mm/kasan/report.c:442 [inline] kasan_report.cold+0x83/0xdf mm/kasan/report.c:459 dev_uevent+0x712/0x780 drivers/base/core.c:2320 uevent_show+0x1b8/0x380 drivers/base/core.c:2391 dev_attr_show+0x4b/0x90 drivers/base/core.c:2094 Although the bug manifested in the driver core, the real cause was a race with the gadget core. dev_uevent() does: if (dev->driver) add_uevent_var(env, "DRIVER=%s", dev->driver->name); and between the test and the dereference of dev->driver, the gadget core sets dev->driver to NULL. The race wouldn't occur if the gadget core registered its devices on a real bus, using the standard synchronization techniques of the driver core. However, it's not necessary to make such a large change in order to fix this bug; all we need to do is make sure that udc->dev.driver is always NULL. In fact, there is no reason for udc->dev.driver ever to be set to anything, let alone to the value it currently gets: the address of the gadget's driver. After all, a gadget driver only knows how to manage a gadget, not how to manage a UDC. This patch simply removes the statements in the gadget core that touch udc->dev.driver.

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
How this class of weakness works · CWE-416

Memory is used after it has been freed, so its contents — now potentially attacker-controlled — drive the program's behaviour. With careful heap grooming this becomes code execution. The fix requires disciplined ownership of memory and often a targeted rework of the object lifecycle.

General guidance for the use after free class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

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:>= 3.1, < 4.9.308>= 4.10, < 4.14.273>= 4.15, < 4.19.236>= 4.20, < 5.4.187>= 5.5, < 5.10.108>= 5.11, < 5.15.31>= 5.16, < 5.16.17

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

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

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 4.9.308 / 4.14.273 / 4.19.236 or later
Fixed in 4.9.3084.14.2734.19.236
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to kernel 4.9.308+, 4.14.273+, 4.19.236+, or 5.4.187+ (or later stable releases)

  1. 1. Identify the Linux kernel version running on affected systems using `uname -r` or `cat /proc/version`
  2. 2. Obtain the kernel source code for the currently running kernel version
  3. 3. Locate the USB gadget core source files, specifically where udc->dev.driver is being set
  4. 4. Apply the fix from commit 00bdd9bf1ac6d401ad926d3d8df41b9f1399f646 which removes the statements that set udc->dev.driver
  5. 5. Alternatively, apply any subsequent stable kernel updates that include this fix for the affected version branches
  6. 6. Rebuild the kernel with the fix applied
  7. 7. Reboot the system to the patched kernel
  8. 8. Verify the fix is active by checking that udc->dev.driver is no longer referenced in the gadget core code
Caveat Standard kernel upgrade risks apply - ensure compatibility with custom drivers/modules and test in non-production environment first

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

We can perform the upgrade in your staging environment and verify nothing breaks — typical engagement from $2,850. Get the upgrade done

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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-2022-48838 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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