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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2024-27012

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-05-01
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.8.8 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: netfilter: nf_tables: restore set elements when delete set fails From abort path, nft_mapelem_activate() needs to restore refcounters to the original state. Currently, it uses the set->ops->walk() to iterate over these set elements. The existing set iterator skips inactive elements in the next generation, this does not work from the abort path to restore the original state since it has to skip active elements instead (not inactive ones). This patch moves the check for inactive elements to the set iterator callback, then it reverses the logic for the .activate case which needs to skip active elements. Toggle next generation bit for elements when delete set command is invoked and call nft_clear() from .activate (abort) path to restore the next generation bit. The splat below shows an object in mappings memleak: [43929.457523] ------------[ cut here ]------------ [43929.457532] WARNING: CPU: 0 PID: 1139 at include/net/netfilter/nf_tables.h:1237 nft_setelem_data_deactivate+0xe4/0xf0 [nf_tables] [...] [43929.458014] RIP: 0010:nft_setelem_data_deactivate+0xe4/0xf0 [nf_tables] [43929.458076] Code: 83 f8 01 77 ab 49 8d 7c 24 08 e8 37 5e d0 de 49 8b 6c 24 08 48 8d 7d 50 e8 e9 5c d0 de 8b 45 50 8d 50 ff 89 55 50 85 c0 75 86 <0f> 0b eb 82 0f 0b eb b3 0f 1f 40 00 90 90 90 90 90 90 90 90 90 90 [43929.458081] RSP: 0018:ffff888140f9f4b0 EFLAGS: 00010246 [43929.458086] RAX: 0000000000000000 RBX: ffff8881434f5288 RCX: dffffc0000000000 [43929.458090] RDX: 00000000ffffffff RSI: ffffffffa26d28a7 RDI: ffff88810ecc9550 [43929.458093] RBP: ffff88810ecc9500 R08: 0000000000000001 R09: ffffed10281f3e8f [43929.458096] R10: 0000000000000003 R11: ffff0000ffff0000 R12: ffff8881434f52a0 [43929.458100] R13: ffff888140f9f5f4 R14: ffff888151c7a800 R15: 0000000000000002 [43929.458103] FS: 00007f0c687c4740(0000) GS:ffff888390800000(0000) knlGS:0000000000000000 [43929.458107] CS: 0010 DS: 0000 ES: 0000 CR0: 0000000080050033 [43929.458111] CR2: 00007f58dbe5b008 CR3: 0000000123602005 CR4: 00000000001706f0 [43929.458114] Call Trace: [43929.458118] <TASK> [43929.458121] ? __warn+0x9f/0x1a0 [43929.458127] ? nft_setelem_data_deactivate+0xe4/0xf0 [nf_tables] [43929.458188] ? report_bug+0x1b1/0x1e0 [43929.458196] ? handle_bug+0x3c/0x70 [43929.458200] ? exc_invalid_op+0x17/0x40 [43929.458211] ? nft_setelem_data_deactivate+0xd7/0xf0 [nf_tables] [43929.458271] ? nft_setelem_data_deactivate+0xe4/0xf0 [nf_tables] [43929.458332] nft_mapelem_deactivate+0x24/0x30 [nf_tables] [43929.458392] nft_rhash_walk+0xdd/0x180 [nf_tables] [43929.458453] ? __pfx_nft_rhash_walk+0x10/0x10 [nf_tables] [43929.458512] ? rb_insert_color+0x2e/0x280 [43929.458520] nft_map_deactivate+0xdc/0x1e0 [nf_tables] [43929.458582] ? __pfx_nft_map_deactivate+0x10/0x10 [nf_tables] [43929.458642] ? __pfx_nft_mapelem_deactivate+0x10/0x10 [nf_tables] [43929.458701] ? __rcu_read_unlock+0x46/0x70 [43929.458709] nft_delset+0xff/0x110 [nf_tables] [43929.458769] nft_flush_table+0x16f/0x460 [nf_tables] [43929.458830] nf_tables_deltable+0x501/0x580 [nf_tables]

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-401

Allocated memory is never released on some path, so a long-running service or a repeatedly triggered request steadily consumes memory until performance degrades or the process crashes. Attackers exploit it by simply driving the leaking path. Remediation is pairing every allocation with a release and using ownership patterns or tooling to catch what leaks.

General guidance for the memory leak 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:>= 6.4, < 6.8.8= 6.9
FedoraOperating system
Affected:= 38= 39= 40

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 6.8.8 or later
Fixed in 6.8.8
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Linux Kernel 6.8.9 or later stable branch; alternatively any distribution kernel that includes the patch commit 86658fc7414d4b9e25c2699d751034537503d637

  1. 1. Identify the current kernel version using `uname -r` or `rpm -q kernel`
  2. 2. For Fedora systems (versions 38, 39, 40), update to a kernel version that includes the fix. The fix is present in kernel version 6.8.8 or later, but note that version 6.9 also contains the vulnerability.
  3. 3. On Fedora, run `dnf update kernel` to install the latest stable kernel that includes the security fix.
  4. 4. After updating, reboot the system to load the fixed kernel: `systemctl reboot`
  5. 5. Verify the fix is applied by checking the kernel version after reboot with `uname -r` and confirming it is >= 6.8.8 (but not 6.9) or a later stable release.
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require system downtime for reboot. Ensure compatibility with existing system drivers and modules before upgrading.

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 $1,600. 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-2024-27012 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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