CVE-2013-6457: Medium severity redhat libvirt vulnerability
An invalid free flaw in the libxl driver in libvirt resulted in libvirt crashing if "virsh numatune" was run on an inactive domain. It may be possible, but unlikely, for an attacker to leverage this flaw for arbitrary code execution.
This issue affects the version of libvirt in Fedora 20. It does not affect the versions of libvirt in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 and 6 as those versions do not use libxl.
Other sources
The libxlDomainGetNumaParameters function in the libxl driver (libxl/libxldriver.c) in libvirt before 1.2.1 does not properly initialize the nodemap, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (invalid free operation and crash) or possibly execute arbitrary code via an inactive domain to the virsh numatune command.
— MITRE
Affected Software
Remediation
Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.
- Upgrade
Upgrade
libvirt/libxl driver (libxl)to a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 1.2.1 - Compensating control
Do not run "virsh numatune" against inactive domains until the libvirt fix is applied, since the crash is triggered by running this command on an inactive domain.
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the severity of CVE-2013-6457?
CVE-2013-6457 has a moderate severity level due to the potential for application crashes and the unlikely possibility of arbitrary code execution.
How do I fix CVE-2013-6457?
To fix CVE-2013-6457, update to a patched version of libvirt that addresses the invalid free flaw.
Which versions of libvirt are affected by CVE-2013-6457?
CVE-2013-6457 affects versions of libvirt up to and including 1.2.0.
What types of systems are impacted by CVE-2013-6457?
Systems running vulnerable versions of libvirt, particularly those deployed on Fedora 20 and older versions, are impacted by CVE-2013-6457.
Are there known exploits for CVE-2013-6457?
There are no publicly available exploits for CVE-2013-6457, making the risk of exploitation relatively low for most users.