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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2024-38576

HIGH · 7.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-06-19
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.1.93 / 6.6.33 or later.
See remediation →
72/100
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: rcu: Fix buffer overflow in print_cpu_stall_info() The rcuc-starvation output from print_cpu_stall_info() might overflow the buffer if there is a huge difference in jiffies difference. The situation might seem improbable, but computers sometimes get very confused about time, which can result in full-sized integers, and, in this case, buffer overflow. Also, the unsigned jiffies difference is printed using %ld, which is normally for signed integers. This is intentional for debugging purposes, but it is not obvious from the code. This commit therefore changes sprintf() to snprintf() and adds a clarifying comment about intention of %ld format. Found by Linux Verification Center (linuxtesting.org) with SVACE.

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-120

A fixed-size buffer is filled without checking the length of the incoming data, so it overflows into neighbouring memory. This is the classic overflow attackers use to overwrite return addresses and hijack execution. The fix is strict length checks and safe, bounded string and memory functions.

General guidance for the classic buffer overflow 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:>= 6.0, < 6.1.93>= 6.2, < 6.6.33>= 6.7, < 6.8.12>= 6.9, < 6.9.3

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 6.1.93 / 6.6.33 / 6.8.12 or later
Fixed in 6.1.936.6.336.8.12
Vendor patch git.kernel.org →
Recommended fix High confidence

Linux Kernel 6.1.93, 6.6.33, 6.8.12, or 6.9.3 (depending on your distribution's base kernel)

  1. Check the currently running kernel version with: uname -r
  2. Identify your Linux distribution and its package manager (apt, yum, dnf, pacman, etc.)
  3. Update your package repository metadata: for apt-based systems run 'sudo apt update', for dnf/yum run 'sudo dnf check-update'
  4. Install a fixed kernel version: for apt-based systems run 'sudo apt install linux-image-<version>', for dnf/yum run 'sudo dnf install kernel-<version>', replacing <version> with 6.1.93, 6.6.33, 6.8.12, or 6.9.3 depending on your base distribution
  5. Update bootloader configuration if necessary (grub2-mkconfig, update-grub, etc.)
  6. Reboot the system to load the new kernel: sudo reboot
  7. Verify the new kernel is running with: uname -r
Caveat Kernel upgrades may require reboot and could have compatibility issues with custom kernel modules or specific hardware drivers; test in staging if possible

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 $3,200. 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-2024-38576 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
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